


You're A Loaded Gun (But You Love Me Better Than Anyone)

by insatiablycurious



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-11
Updated: 2015-02-19
Packaged: 2018-03-07 02:38:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 69,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3158051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insatiablycurious/pseuds/insatiablycurious
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Danny Lawrence is the captain of the hockey team and Carmilla Karnstein is the yearbook photographer. When they're forced to pair up as AP Chemistry lab partners, the two discover they have a lot more in common than they thought and what starts off as a senior year fling turns into something much more serious than they intended. Emotional shenanigans ensue.</p><p>(Lawstein High School AU)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. August

**Author's Note:**

> This one has been a long time coming.
> 
> Happy Birthday, Michaela.

_17th._

 

Danny always hated the first day of school. It was always filled with confusion and scrambling around trying to figure out the best route to get to class and lots of boring lectures about syllabi and classroom rules that haven't changed since kindergarten. She sinks down onto the uncomfortable stool in her 3rd period AP Chemistry class with a groan. Luckily she had Maddie and Julie in her Anatomy class and Perry was in her Latin class, but she was also stuck with Kirsch and his constant sexist commentary and Lafontaine and their sympathy stares. 

At least she had her Physics class with Elsie to look forward to next period, plus her free 6th. 

Just then someone bumps her from behind, jolting her out of her thoughts. She looks up and locks eyes with the last person (okay, maybe not the LAST person) she wanted to see. 

Carmilla Karnstein. Best friend to her ex-girlfriend Laura Hollis.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

"Sorry." Carmilla mutters, straightening her backpack and breaking eye contact.

She makes her way to the table at the back and plops down onto the stool with a sigh. Danny turns back to her notebook and continues doodling planets until the teacher breezes through the door right as the bell rings.

"Good morning, class. For those of you that didn't have me for regular Chemistry, I am Mrs. Vector. Welcome to hell." She says, earning a classroom full of laughter.

She spends the next twenty minutes going over the syllabus, quiz and test dates before pulling out the roster.

"Now, I'm going to assign you lab partners-" the class groans, "-trust me, it's much easier this way."

She calls out name after name before getting about halfway through the list when-

"Lawrence! Danny Lawrence. You're with Miss Karnstein."

Danny's head shoots up from where it was resting on her hands.

"What!" She exclaims.

She hears Carmilla sputtering from the back of the room. Mrs. Vector looks up from her roster sheet with an amused expression.

"You heard me. Lawrence. Karnstein. Partners." She replies, pointing at each of the girls before continuing with her list.

Danny closes her eyes and counts to ten while the rest of the class begins to clear out. When she opens them Carmilla is hovering over her right shoulder.

"Pretty decent, Beanpole. But Saturn's rings are crooked."

Danny slams her notebook closed and glares up at the other girl.

"Listen, I really need to pass this class-"

"What, and I don't?" Carmilla counters, leaning against the table.

"I never said that. If you had let me finish, I was going to say I need to pass this class so I need all the help I can get. I'm not saying we have to be friends but, we're going to have to tolerate each other." Danny replies.

Carmilla studies her for a moment before nodding sharply.

"I get it. We can collaborate in peace." She says, adjusting the strap on her backpack.

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow." Danny says, standing up and grabbing her bag.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure we have 7th and 8th together." Carmilla calls, walking backwards towards the door.

"Wait, how do you-"

"Laura." They both say at the same time.

Carmilla grins and takes off, leaving Danny glaring at the doorway.

-

"Wait, so Vector paired you up with Karnstein?" Elsie asks after their shared Physics class, leaning against her locker as Danny shoves her AP Chem textbook back into her own locker next to Elsie's.

"Yeah. My fucking lab partner is my fucking ex-girlfriend's best friend." Danny growls, grabbing her books for her last few classes before slamming the door shut with a bang. Elsie jumps.

"Well, at least she's smart so you don't have to worry about her slacking?" Elsie reasons.

"Yeah, unless she tries to sabotage me on purpose because of Laura." Danny says, putting her backpack on her back and locking her locker.

"I don't think she would do that. Plus, Laura dumped you so it's not like-" Elsie clamps her mouth shut at the look on Danny's face. "Sorry, boss."

"No. No, you're right. Listen, I'll see you after school." Danny replies, turning to head towards the stairwell. She pauses and calls back over her shoulder: "and stop calling me that!"

Elsie laughs.

-

She's making her way through the cafeteria with her lunch, trying to spot where in the hell Perry's managed to grab a table when someone tugs at her elbow. She turns around and looks down and has to remind herself to breathe.

"Hey, Danny." Laura says, smiling nervously.

(Aw, futz.)

"Hey." She says, glancing around.

No sign of Perry anywhere.

"You look good." Laura says, gesturing at her with her free hand.

"Thanks. So do you." Danny replies.

They stand there in silence for a few more moments. Danny's brain was screaming at her to turn and run away, forget about lunch and just get out of there. She felt like she was suffocating. Finally, she spots Perry staring at her like a deer in headlights from the far corner of the caf.

"Ah, there's Perry. I told her I'd eat with her." Danny says, nodding her head in Perry's direction. Laura nods enthusiastically. 

"Yeah, I should find LaF and SJ. But, I'll see you in 7th?" Laura asks. Danny pauses in making her escape.

"Yeah, of course." She says.

She practically sprints over to where Perry's pretending to read over her schedule and sinks down into the seat beside of her.

"You okay?" Perry says, not looking up from the blue sheet of paper.

Danny groans.

Perry sets the paper down and drops her head to Danny's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." She says. Danny shrugs but leans into Perry.

"It's okay. I mean, It'll be okay." Danny replies.

Perry lifts her head from Danny's shoulder as Maddie and Julie appear, bickering about something.

"Lawrence, will you please tell this idiot that _Catcher In The Rye_ was way overrated?" Maddie begs, taking the seat across from Danny.

" _Catcher In The Rye_ was way overrated." Danny says, quirking an eyebrow at Julie as she sat down next to Maddie.

"Look, I just said-" Julie starts to argue but stops when she sees the look on Perry's face. "What? What did we miss?"

"Nothing." Danny says quickly. Perry huffs from beside of her.

"Danny ran into Laura." Perry explains. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Shit." Maddie mumbles.

"I'm fine." Danny says sternly.

"Yeah, about that. Elsie said Carmilla's your lab partner for AP Chem." Julie says, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"I'm going to strangle her." Danny growls.

"I don't think Laura would approve." Maddie says, laughing.

"No, not Karnstein. Elsie. It's fine. I'm fine. Everything is fine." Danny snaps, taking a huge bite out of her apple.

The other girls stare at her in silence for a few moments before Maddie shrugs and shoves a handful of fries into her mouth.

 

 

_20th._

 

Danny double checks her measurements before sliding her lab book over to Carmilla. Carmilla glances over it before raising both eyebrows and making an impressed "huh" sound.

"What?" Danny asks, reaching to unplug the scale.

"Nothing." Carmilla replies, copying Danny's equations into her own book.

"Seriously, spill it." Danny says, rolling her eyes.

"I just didn't realize you were capable of doing such advanced equations in your head." Carmilla replies airily. Danny scoffs.

"What, because I'm captain of the hockey team I'm not allowed to be intelligent?" Danny counters, quirking an eyebrow. Carmilla laughs.

"It has nothing to do with your desire to skate around on knives and punch people and everything to do with your goofy demeanor."

"Demeanor shouldn't determine intelligence. And I don't punch people."

"Tell that to that girl from Eastwood." Carmilla replies, rolling her eyes.

"That was one time and she intentionally shoved Perry." Danny growls, grabbing the test tubes and marching over to the sink.

Carmilla rolls her eyes as Danny rinses out the test tubes.

"Like you haven't made your own assumptions about me." Carmilla says, closing both lab books.

"Yeah, that you're a bitch." Danny deadpans, putting away the rest of the equipment as the bell rings.

Carmilla walks over to her and drops Danny's lab book onto the table in front her.

"I'll see you in class." She says coldly, walking out of the room without another word.

Danny mutters to herself as she snatches her book off the table.

-

"Gina looked pretty good." Elsie says, flipping through a stack of tryout forms.

The two were camped out in Danny's basement going through hockey tryout forms after today's tryouts.

"She did. Better than last year." Danny replies, reading through Gina's form.

"Kelsey's definitely out." Elsie says, rolling her eyes and tossing a form into the "No" pile.

"Wait, which Kelsey? There's two." Danny asks, looking up from putting Gina in the "Maybe"pile.

"Kelsey Fuller. But honestly, Kelsey Kelvin was pretty sloppy too." Elsie replies.

"Yeah good point." Danny says. Elsie looks up from her stack of forms.

"Well, who do we have so far, boss?"

"Me, you, Perry, Maddie, Julie, and Becca. Jess and Gina are definite maybes. And stop calling me that." Danny replies, gesturing towards the stack of "Yes" forms.

"So how are things with your lab partner?" Elsie asks, all too innocently.

"Emily's a yes. She was the only Freshman to score on Perry and she has a good attitude." Danny says, ignoring Elsie's question.

"Oh come on Danny." Elsie begs, dropping Emily's form into the "Yes" pile. Danny sighs.

"She's...difficult." Danny replies, grabbing the "Maybe" pile and sorting through it.

"Difficult as in bitchy or difficult as in doesn't know what she's doing?" Elsie asks, wincing as Danny drops Kara's form into the "No" pile.

"You only like Kara because you think she's hot." Danny says, rolling her eyes, "and Carmilla's...well, it's just hard for the two of us to exist in the same orbit."

"There you go with the space analogies." Elsie mutters, sitting back and watching Danny sort the last few girls out.

"I like space, okay?" Danny defends, adding Jess and Gina to the "Yes" pile.

"Who are our last two?" Elsie asks as Danny holds up the last two forms.

"Ali and Toby." She replies, dropping them both into the pile.

"Think Perry can handle little Freshie Toby as her backup goalie?" Elsie asks with a grin.

"Please, Perry's practically a mom." Danny replies, leaning back against the couch.

"Maybe she can stick Carmilla in time out for you." Elsie jokes, giggling. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Shut up." She mumbles.

 

_24th._

 

"Hey."

Danny keeps her head in her locker so Carmilla won't see her eye roll.

"Hey." She replies, leaning out of her locker to find Carmilla leaned against the one next to hers.

"Are you free on Thursday?" Carmilla asks.

"I have practice until 6 and then I'm free, why?"

"Our lab reports are due on Friday. I was thinking we could meet up somewhere and work on it." Carmilla replies, looking down briefly before regaining her usual attitude. "I want to make sure you don't fuck anything up."

"Why do you do that?" Danny asks, tilting her head to the side.

"Do what?"

"That. That defensive thing where you insult me." Danny replies, shutting her locker with a bang that makes Carmilla flinch. It doesn't go unnoticed.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Carmilla dismisses with a wave of her hand. 

"Carmilla-"

"Look, meet me at the coffee place at 6:30." She interrupts, starting to walk past Danny.

"Which one, there's like 8 in a five mile radius." Danny calls after her.

"The one near the park." Carmilla calls back. 

Danny shifts her backpack on her shoulder and frowns.

 

 

_27th_

 

"You've got to be quicker than that, Ali, or we'll get an icing call." Danny yells from the other end of the rink as Ali finally gets to the puck.

She skates back around the goal as Perry lifts up her mask.

"Are you coming out to eat with us after?" She asks, reaching for her water bottle. Danny shakes her head.

"I can't, I'm supposed to meet Carmilla to work on our lab report." Danny replies, wincing as Julie fires off a slapshot that goes right past Toby's head.

"Oh god, you two are interacting outside of a school setting?" Perry asks in mock horror.

Danny reaches over and pulls Perry's mask down over her face.

"Watch it." She says, before releasing Perry's mask and turning back towards Maddie, who has Gina backed up against the boards. "Broadchurch, back off of her!"

Maddie pulls away laughing as Gina groans. Danny turns back to Perry.

"I can't figure her out. I always assumed she hated me because she never spoke to me even though I was dating her best friend, and when she did speak to me it was always a snarkfest."

"Well, Carmilla's...a bit of a mystery." Perry replies, raising her mask again.

Danny scoffs.

"The girl is a walking, brooding, stereotypical philosophy major. Like, seriously." Danny says.

"Well, Danny..."

"I do not brood."

"Okay, so what do you call what you did the entire month of July after you and Laura broke up?" Perry asks, cringing as Toby blocks a shot with her chest.

"That was not brooding that was- you know what, it doesn't matter. I was dumped. I had a reason to brood. If I was brooding. Which I was not." Danny argues.

Perry laughs.

"Okay. But all I'm saying is, the two of you know nothing about each other. Maybe you'll get along better if you find some common ground. Other than Laura, I mean. Because that won't end well." Perry says, sagely.

Danny reaches over and flips Perry's mask down again.

"Thanks, mom."

Perry smacks her with her goalie stick.

-

"What are you reading?"

Danny nearly topples off her chair.

"Do you always have to sneak up on people?" She says, putting her bookmark back in her book and scowling at Carmilla, who beams at her.

"It's part of my charm." Carmilla replies, taking the seat across from Danny.

She grabs Danny's book from her before she can protest and reads the cover.

" _The Invisible Man_. Hmm. Nice choice."

"Don't tell me. You were expecting something with more violence. Like a Tom Clancy novel." Danny deadpans, snatching her book back.

"Actually, I didn't know you could read at all." Carmilla replies, smirking.

"For the sake of our Chemistry grade, I'm going to ignore that." Danny says, reaching into her bag for her lab book.

"Fair enough." Carmilla replies, reaching for her own.

"I figure we can just compare what we have for the analysis questions and make sure everything lines up." Danny says. Carmilla nods.

"That works."

They work in silence for a while before Perry's words start nagging at her in the back of Danny's mind. She knows next to nothing about this girl, despite the fact that she dated her best friend for over a year. Finally she caves.

"What do you like to do?" Danny asks suddenly, causing Carmilla to jump.

"Do?" Carmilla repeats, looking at Danny like she's lost her mind.

"Yeah, like, what do you do for fun? You do have fun, don't you? Or does it interfere with your brooding." Danny teases.

"I do not brood."

"Yeah, okay." Danny says, laughing.

"I like art. I like reading." She replies, shrugging. "I'm the yearbook photographer this year so that's going to keep me busy."

"Wait, really?" Danny asks.

"Yeah." Carmilla replies.

"That's impressive." Danny says, leaning back and looking Carmilla over.

"Yeah, well. So is being the captain of the hockey team." Carmilla admits. "But if you tell anyone I said that I'll rip out your vocal cords."

"Yeesh, and you think I'm the violent one." Danny says, unconsciously rubbing at her neck. Carmilla grins.

The atmosphere is less tense for the remainder of their time and when Danny finishes reading over the last analysis question, Carmilla is actually smiling at her. They gather their things and walk out together.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Danny says, digging her keys out of her pocket. Carmilla nods.

"Yeah, tomorrow."

Danny starts to walk away before she stops and turns back.

" _Where The Wild Things Are_." She calls out. Carmilla stops.

"What?"

"My favorite book. It's _Where The_ _Wild Things_ _Are_."

Carmilla looks her over in silence for a few moments and just as Danny's about to turn away again she calls out:

" _The Death-Defying Pepper Roux_."

"I haven't heard of that one." Danny says.

Carmilla merely shrugs at her before walking away, leaving Danny entirely more confused than she was when she woke up this morning.

 

_31st._

 

"We got an A!" Danny exclaims, grinning as Mrs. Vector passes back hers and Carmilla's lab reports at the end of class.

"Thank god." Carmilla mumbles, taking her report from Danny.

"Our first exam is on the 11th, though." Danny says, packing her books back into her bag. Carmilla grimaces.

"We're going to have to study together, aren't we."

"I mean, if you want to go at it by yourself you're more than welcome to-"

"I didn't say that." Carmilla snaps, zipping up her backpack with a scowl.

"Calm down." Danny says, standing and shouldering her bag. "We have Labor Day weekend, so we could meet at my house and study. Or yours."

Carmilla's face pales and she shakes her head.

"No. Not mine."

Danny looks at her curiously.

"Oh...kay. We'll meet at mine then." Danny replies. "Listen, I've got 6th period free so-"

"So do I." Carmilla interrupts. 

"Oh. Well. I'm usually in the library if you ever want to go over stuff." Danny offers.

"I'm usually in the art room so if you need to find me..." Carmilla trails off with a shrug before shouldering her bag and gliding towards the door. "See ya." She calls over her shoulder.

And then she's gone.

Danny stands there even more confused than before. She shakes her head and leaves to go meet Elsie in Physics.


	2. September

_2nd._

 

"You're putting too much-"

"No I'm not. I measured it exactly-"

"You're too tall to measure it exactly, your perception is off-"

"Jesus fucking Christ, Karnstein will you give it a rest-"

"Watch what you're-"

"OUCH!"

Danny jumps backwards and howls with pain as the hot liquid bubbles over the beaker and onto her hand. She barely manages to keep the beaker from tipping off the ringstand before she doubles over grabbing her hand.

"Let me see it." Carmilla says quietly, stepping into Danny's personal space. Danny immediately backs away.

"No, it's fine. It's fine." Danny says, checking her hand.

There's an angry blister forming on the fleshy skin of her left thumb. She winces. Hockey practice is going to be a bitch.

"I told you you were putting to much in there." Carmilla says, matter-of-factly.

Danny grumbles to herself as she runs her burnt hand under some cold water.

"Lawrence! Nurse's office!" Mrs. Vector calls out.

Danny swears under her breath and grabs her things with her good hand, avoiding Carmilla's eyes, and bolts out the door. She's halfway down the hall when she hears someone running after her.

"Wait up!" Carmilla calls out. 

"What are you doing?" Danny seethes out, but slows down anyway. Carmilla catches up to her.

"Making sure you're okay." Carmilla replies as the two set off towards the nurse's office. Danny scoffs.

"You just wanted to get out of class." Danny grumbles.

"Duh. But I mean, you are my lab partner so I do want to make sure you're not permanently disfigured." Carmilla says with a cheeky grin.

Danny rolls her eyes but keeps her mouth shut.

-

"What did you do to your hand!" Perry exclaims as Danny flops down into the seat beside of her.

"I don't want to talk about it." Danny mutters, reaching for her yogurt with a scowl.

"Did you break it on Carmilla's face?" Maddie asks with a snicker as Julie elbows her.

"You didn't did you?" Perry asks, sitting up straighter.

"No, good grief." Danny replies, shaking her head.

"Good. You two shouldn't be fighting." Perry admonishes, reaching for her water bottle.

"I don't get her." Danny says, shaking her head. "I keep thinking she hates me but then she acts like she wants to be friends but then she's back to being a snarky-"

"Language!" Perry interjects.

"-jerk." Danny finishes lamely.

"Why do you want to be friends with her?" Maddie asks, trying to steal one of Julie's fries. Julie slaps her hand away.

"It's just...I don't know." Danny replies, staring thoughtfully at her, now empty, yogurt cup.

"That's articulate." Maddie teases, going for Julie's fries again causing the other girl to move her tray out of Maddie's reach.

"Shut up. I don't know, there's something about her I can't figure out." Danny muses.

"It's because she's mysterious." Perry says.

"No. No I don't fall for that crap." Danny argues.

"If you say so." Julie says with a shrug. "Oh for god's sake, Maddie!" She shoves her leftover fries over to Maddie, who grins triumphantly.

Danny laughs and shakes her head.

 

 

_4th._

 

Danny makes her way through the various aisles of books in the library, browsing for something new to read since she finished _The Invisible Man_ a few nights ago. None of the titles are jumping out at her and she sighs, turning to head back to another section when she slams into someone else.

"I'm so sorry!" She exclaims and then groans when she sees who it is.

"Shit, Jolly Ginger Giant, you'd think all that extra altitude would let you see where you're going better."

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Danny asks, pinching the bridge of her nose. Carmilla grins.

"It's 6th period. You told me where to find you, remember?" She replies.

"Right. Do you always have to sneak up on me like that, though?" Danny grumbles.

"Yes. It's fun." Carmilla says with a grin.

Danny shakes her head and walks past Carmilla, gesturing for her to follow her. The two make their way over to another section across the library. Danny starts browsing the titles there while Carmilla leans against the shelf.

"We have our first test on Tuesday and our lab report from this week is due the same day." Carmilla says. Danny nods.

"Like I said, we can meet at my house this weekend and study."

"What about the lab report?" Carmilla asks. "Because I'm not doing both in the same night, that's too much."

"No, you're right." Danny agrees. "What about what we did last time? That coffee place? We could meet there Saturday to get our lab reports together and then meet at my house on Monday, since we have it off, to study for the test?"

"Sounds like a plan, Gingersnap." Carmilla agrees.

She eyes Danny for a second before reaching past her and grabbing a book off the shelf near Danny's elbow. She flips it around and hands it to her.

"Here. Try this one."

Danny takes the book from her and reads the title.

" _And Then There Were None_. Agatha Christie. Hmm. Right up your alley." Danny teases. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Just read it. You'll like it, trust me." She winks and then glides away with a final "See you in class!" tossed over her shoulder.

Danny turns the book over and reads the description with increasing interest.

 

 

_6th._

 

Danny quickly ducks into the coffee shop, running almost ten minutes late for her meeting with Carmilla. She groans when she sees the line of people waiting at the counter. Saturday probably wasn't the best idea. She scans the place, looking for Carmilla. She spots her in the back, feet propped up on the chair in front of her, sketching something in a book with a look of complete concentration. 

Danny pauses, studying Carmilla for a moment. She's focused on the paper in front of her, her hands moving quickly over the page. She seems to have tuned out the noise and people around her and Danny wonders if Carmilla's art is like Danny's hockey. A piece of hair falls into Carmilla's face and Danny has the overwhelming urge to brush it back. This thought alarms her and she shakes herself out of her trance, ignoring the fluttering feeling in her stomach.

Coffee. She just needed coffee.

She makes her way over to Carmilla's table, nearly tripping over herself when Carmilla takes a sip of her coffee and then licks her lips.

'Get your shit together, Lawrence.' She thinks.

"Hey!" She calls out. Carmilla jumps a little and immediately slams her sketchbook closed.

"Took you long enough." Carmilla grumbles, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, sorry, I had to help my mom with some stuff for her classroom and traffic was a bitch." Danny explains, staring at Carmilla's feet until she moves them out of the way. She drops her bag in the now empty seat.

"Classroom?" Carmilla asks, shoving her sketchbook back into her bag.

"My mom's a kindergarten teacher. She's too short to decorate some of the bulletin boards. Hey, listen, I'm gonna go grab some coffee 'cause I'm dying and then we'll get started." Danny explains, gesturing towards the line at the counter.

Carmilla waves her away so she goes to stand in line. She has to fight the urge to look back at the other girl at least three times before the barista takes her order. As she stands there waiting for her coffee, she finally caves and sneaks a glance back at Carmilla and catches her staring right at her. Carmilla quickly averts her eyes and Danny swears she can see a blush forming on the other girl's cheeks.

"Danny?" The guy behind the counter calls and she nearly steps on the person beside her while trying to get her cup.

She makes it back to the table without incident though, and takes the seat across from Carmilla after moving her bag. Carmilla's focused on her phone in her lap and doesn't look up for a few seconds. When she does, she clears her throat.

"So how far have you gotten?" She asks.

"Mmm, a few questions. Not very far, honestly." Danny replies, taking a sip of her coffee.

"I probably got just as far as you did." Carmilla says, flipping open her lab book.

They work in silence, just like last time, occasionally bumping elbows or hands while gesturing or reaching for something. Danny downs two coffees and still tries to blame the the fluttering in her stomach on the lack of caffeine.

When they finally finish, Danny leans back and stretches with a giant yawn. 

"So, Monday then?" She asks, leaning back forward just in time to catch Carmilla's eyes flicker up from her previously exposed stomach.

"Yeah." Carmilla replies, practically leaping out of her chair.

Danny stands and grabs her bag, following Carmilla out the door and onto the sidewalk.

"I'll text you directions tomorrow." Danny say, digging in her pocket for her car keys.

Carmilla merely nods at her before bolting off down the street. Danny watches her walk away and shakes her head.

 

 

_7th._

 

Danny races up the basement stairs at the sound of the doorbell. She's halfway though the living room when she hears her mother's voice.

"Daniella! Your friend is here!"

"She's not m- thanks, ma." Danny stops her snarky reply at the sight of Carmilla in the doorway, smiling at her mother with such genuine adoration that Danny almost stops breathing. Her mother, Beatrice Lawrence, is a solid foot and two inches shorter than Danny, with long dark hair and bronze skin. The exact opposite of Danny.

"I was just telling her I loved her sweater. Muy bonito!" Her mother exclaims. "Daniella, tell her her sweater is nice!" She pokes Danny in her side.

"Uh, it's a nice sweater." Danny sputters out as Carmilla's eyes flick up to her face.

"Thanks." Carmilla replies, barely containing her smile.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me. Danny, comportarse." Beatrice points at her briefly before ducking into the kitchen.

"Come on, basement's this way." Danny says, blushing furiously and leading the way to the stairs. 

"Whoa." Carmilla breathes out when she sees the basement.

There's an old battered couch in the middle of the room with a rug with multi-colored dinosaurs on it that used to be in Danny's room until middle school and an old television. And a bookshelf to the right overflowing with books. But that's not what has Carmilla's attention. She slowly makes her way to the left side of the room where a drum kit is set up next to a pair of guitars and a scratched-up old piano .

"You play all these?" Carmilla asks, gesturing towards the instruments. Danny nods.

"Yeah. The drums are my favorite." She replies, shoving her hands into her back pockets.

"That's actually really interesting." Carmilla says, running a finger along the circumference of one of the cymbals. 

Danny shrugs. Carmilla turns around to meet Danny's stare. 

"Shall we?" She gestures towards the couch and Danny almost chokes at Carmilla's playful eyebrow quirk.

"Y-yeah. Yes." Danny says, regaining her composure and leading Carmilla over to the couch, where her textbook and notes are waiting.

-

"I feel like my head is going to explode." Carmilla mumbles, her face pressed into the couch cushion.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Danny agrees from her place sprawled out on the dinosaur rug.

"Danny, can I ask you something?" Carmilla says, turning her head to face Danny.

"Depends on the question." Danny replies, quirking an eyebrow.

"Your parents...I mean, they're not- you're not-"

"Just ask me, Karnstein." Danny interrupts.

"You're adopted, aren't you? I mean your mom- and I saw pictures of your dad." Carmilla asks.

"Yeah." Danny replies, nodding her head.

"Your mom's really nice." Carmilla remarks, picking at a loose thread on the couch near her head.

Danny's expression softens.

"Yeah, yeah she is. My dad's a giant nerd." Danny says, grinning.

"So that's where you get it." Carmilla teases, smiling.

Danny laughs.

"You have no idea. You'd like him though. He likes art and reading too." Danny replies. Carmilla smiles again.

"What time is it?" She asks, refusing to lift her head up.

Danny rolls over onto her stomach and grabs her phone.

"6:32." She replies.

"Fuck." Carmilla swears, pushing herself off the couch too fast and toppling onto the floor.

"Whoa. Hey. Easy there." Danny says, as she quickly crawls over to Carmilla and puts her hand on her arm. Carmilla stiffens.

"I'm fine." 

Danny pulls her hand away quickly and sits back.

"I just really need to get home. My mom's going to kill me if I miss dinner." Carmilla explains, standing up and grabbing for her book.

Danny grabs Carmilla's bag for her and hands it to her.

"At least let me walk you out." Danny reasons. Carmilla slows. She doesn't respond other than a quick nod.

Danny helps her gather the rest of her stuff and leads the way back up the steps and through the living room. Just as they get to the door, it swings open and Danny's dad steps in.

"Hey I- oh, hey." Danny father, Derek Lawrence, freezes mid greeting at the sight of Danny and Carmilla.

He too is shorter than Danny, the top of his head barely brushing Danny's nose. His dark hair is cut short and his hazel eyes are wide beneath his glasses.

"Dad, this is Carmilla, my lab partner. Carmilla, this is my dad." Danny says, gesturing towards her father, who smiles.

"Carmilla, very interesting name. How do you spell it?" He asks.

"Dad, not now." Danny hisses. Derek raises his hands in surrender.

"I'm sorry, I really need to get home. It was nice to meet you, though." Carmilla replies, smiling. He nods and steps out of their way.

"You can tell her all about the historical context of her name next time, dad, I promise." Danny says as Carmilla opens the door.

"I'm holding you to that, Cadet." He teases as Danny leads Carmilla outside.

"Cadet?" Carmilla asks as soon as Danny closes the door behind her. Danny laughs.

"It's short for 'Space Cadet' it's a nickname." She explains.

Carmilla laughs as she unlocks her car door. Danny holds it open for her as she tosses her bag into the passenger seat.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Carmilla says, climbing into the driver's seat and reaching for the door. Danny nods and steps back. She turns to walk back into the house when Carmilla calls out to her again.

"Hey, Beanpole."

"Yeah?" Danny asks, spinning back around. Carmilla's leaning her head out of the window.

" _Somewhere Over The Rainbow_. It's my favorite song." She says.

Danny stares at her for a few moments before grinning.

"That's surprising."

"Yes, well, I'm full of surprises." Carmilla replies, and then she's rolling up the window and backing out of Danny's driveway.

Danny shakes her head and walks back to her house only to find her parents both leaned against the door obviously eavesdropping.

"Could you guys be any more obvious?" She asks. "And we're just friends."

"Of course you are."

"Sí hija."

Danny rolls her eyes.

 

 

_11th._

 

"Hey." Danny calls out softly, knocking on the open door of the art room.

Carmilla spins around. Her hair is up and she's dressed in an old white button down that's too big for her and is covered in traces of various art supplies. She points her brush at Danny.

"Now who's sneaking up on people." Carmilla says, narrowing her eyes.

"It's 6th period, you told me where to find you, darlin'." Danny replies, mimicking Carmilla's voice.

"I do not sound like that, Beanpole."

"You kind of do." Danny counters, grinning.

Carmilla rolls her eyes and turns back to her canvas.

"Holy shit, is that one of yours?" Danny asks, pointing at the canvas perched on the easel. It's a painting of a dark forest. The details on the trees and sky are unbelievably immaculate.

"Yes." Carmilla responds, using the brush to touch up one of the trees in the foreground.

"That's...I mean, wow."

"Thank you." Carmilla replies, surprisingly un-smug. Danny notices her cheeks turning pink.

"Listen, I'm actually glad you're here." Carmilla says, not looking away from the painting. "I need to ask you a favor."

"I'm listening." Danny says, sitting on top of the nearby table.

"You know that paper we have to write for English?" Carmilla asks.

"Yeah, the one on _Frankenstein_?" Danny replies.

"Yes. Well, I was wondering if you'd mind looking over mine next week? I'd get Laura to do it but-"

"-but she's kind of bad with symbolism." Danny finishes. Carmilla laughs.

"Yeah."

"Of course. I can swing by your place and pick it up from you after practice on Tuesday?" Danny says. Carmilla stiffens. "I won't stay, you can just run it out to me and then I'll give it back to you in class the next day."

Carmilla stares at her painting for a few moments before clearing her throat.

"Yeah, that works." She finally replies. Danny stands up from the table.

"Okay, I'll leave you to your art." Danny says, gesturing towards the canvas.

"Thanks." Carmilla whispers.

"No problem." Danny calls back.

But she can't shake the feeling that Carmilla isn't just talking about her paper.

-

"So you and Carmilla are getting friendlier." Perry remarks, leaning back against the goal.

"Bellamy! Watch your right side!" Danny calls out, grimacing as Maddie easily stole the puck from Becca. "I mean, I wouldn't say we were friends."

"Technically, I didn't. I just said the two of you are getting friendlier." Perry corrects. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Broadchurch, I swear to god if you don't stop boarding the freshmen I'm going to bench you!" Danny snaps. Maddie rolls her eyes and backs away from Ali.

"So, what happened?" Perry asks.

"Nothing really. She's not that bad. Did you know she's really good at art?" Danny replies, still not meeting Perry's intrigued stare.

"No. No, but I don't know much about her, really. I mean, other than what Laura's told me. She doesn't interact with people outside of Laura." Perry says, wincing as Toby lets an easy shot go right past her.

"Tobs, pay attention!" Danny calls out. She turns back to Perry. "Yeah, I've noticed that. I wonder why."

"Because she's-"

"I swear to god if you say 'mysterious' I'm letting Toby have the starting spot." Danny interrupts, point her hockey stick in Perry's face. Perry slaps it away with her glove, unfazed.

"No you won't. And I was going to say 'reserved.'"

"Whatever." Danny says, rolling her eyes.

"So you like her?" Perry asks.

"What!? No! Of course not! Plus, I'm not her type and she's Laura's best friend." Danny yelps, spinning around on her skates to face Perry. Perry just stares at her.

"Danny, I meant in general." She says. "Wait, what do you mean you're not her type?" Perry narrows her eyes.

"I-"

"BOSS, WATCH OUT!" Elsie yells as a loose puck comes flying at Danny's head. She ducks and glides backwards, gracefully.

"Will you stop calling me that!" Danny yells back, pointing her stick at Elsie furiously.

She avoids meeting Perry's eyes for the rest of practice.

 

 

_15th._

 

Danny makes her way up Carmilla's driveway, spinning her keys around on her finger. She jumps over the porch steps and rings the doorbell. She hears muted yelling coming from behind the door. The yelling gets closer before stopping abruptly and the door swings open revealing a very stressed looking Carmilla.

"Hey. Outside." She breathes out quickly putting her hand on Danny's chest and gently pushing her backwards.

She steps out onto the porch and shuts the door behind her. She pulls her hand away from Danny's chest and looks anywhere but at Danny's face. Danny resists the urge to touch the place on her chest where Carmilla's hand was seconds ago. It burns.

"Sorry I-" Carmilla starts to explain.

"Hey, it's okay. You got your paper?" Danny interrupts.

Carmilla shoots her a brief grateful look before holding up her other hand, which is clutching her paper.

"Hot off the press." She jokes, wiggling the paper. Danny laughs.

"Okay." 

Carmilla hands her the paper and she takes it gently. 

"Hey, listen..." Danny starts, glancing nervously over Carmilla at the house. "If you want to come over for a while..."

Carmilla just stares at her with this odd look on her face. Like she's seeing her for the first time.

"I...no, no I can't. But, thanks." She replies.

"Okay." Danny says, walking backwards and hopping off the steps and onto the driveway.

"I'll give this to you tomorrow?" She calls out. Carmilla nods. "See you in class, Carm. Illa. Carmilla."

Danny blushes furiously at her almost nickname and practically yanks her car door off it's hinges in her haste to scramble away. As she's backing out of the driveway she catches Carmilla smiling at her from the porch.

She hums a tune the whole way home that sounds suspiciously like "The Very Thought Of You."

 

 

_24th._

 

"I've never understood how Perry finds having pucks shot at her entire body a stress reliever." Carmilla mumbles, watching around Danny's elbow as Elsie fires off another shot right at Perry's face. Perry swiftly blocks the shot with the side of her glove and Danny grins.

"Something about concentrating on not letting the puck past her. It makes her zen." She turns back to face Carmilla, who continues to watch Perry with stunned disbelief.

Danny's leaning over the boards while Carmilla sits in the front row, waiting on Danny's hockey practice to end so they can go to their usual coffee place and work on this week's lab report.

"Watch your six, West!" Danny calls out as Emily nearly takes out Julie. Julie spins around knocks Emily's stick out of the way.

Danny shoves off from the boards and skates towards Toby's end of the rink as Toby passes her the puck. Emily and Becca come charging at her but she easily fakes a pass and spins around them. She quickly passes the puck over to Maddie who dodges Ali and fires the puck back to Danny who locks eyes with Perry before burying it right past Perry's left ear and into the back of the net.

She hears Perry grumbling as she yanks her mask up.

"Whatever, Lawrence." She calls out as Danny grins at her.

"That's it for today guys!" Danny yells as the rest of the girls cheer and race each other towards the locker room.

Danny skates over to Perry who's watching her suspiciously. Danny taps her on top of her helmet.

"What?" She asks when she notices the look on Perry's face.

"Nothing." Perry replies, nonchalantly, scooping the few pucks she managed to let into the net with her stick.

"Seriously, Per. What?"

"You showing off, there?" Perry asks. Danny freezes.

"Why would- what are you- what?" Danny sputters, nearly dropping her stick. Perry shrugs at her.

"Nothing." She repeats. "See you tomorrow, Danny."

And with that, she leaves Danny standing completely dumbstruck on the ice. She looks up to see Carmilla leaning over the boards staring at her and grinning.

"Ah, hell." Danny mutters under her breath.

-

"Wait, what did you put for number 16?" Carmilla asks, rubbing at her forehead.

"Uhh...something about ionic bonds. Here just take it." Danny says, squeezing her eyes shut and shoving her book in Carmilla's direction.

"Thanks." Carmilla mutters, leaning over to copy Danny's answer.

"I'm pretty sure my brain is melting." Danny grumbles, covering her face with her hands.

"Please don't. I need you to check all my English papers this year." Carmilla says. Danny's eyes snap open and her hands drop from her face.

"Did Carmilla Karnstein just say she needed me?" Danny teases. Carmilla growls and flings her wadded up napkin at Danny's face, bouncing it off of her nose.

"Shut the fuck up."

"Awww." Danny says. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Look, I need to get all A's if I'm going to get a scholarship and get out of this god-forsaken town and I got an A on that paper because of you so, yes, I need your brain intact." Carmilla says, crossing her arms.

"I get it. I need a scholarship too, my hockey skills can only go so far...I need the grades to back me up." Danny admits. "And, as much as it pains me to admit it, you're kind of the best lab partner ever."

"Are we bonding right now?" Carmilla teases.

"I think so." Danny replies, grinning.

"Jesus Christ, I've gone native." Carmilla groans.

Danny laughs so hard she gets the hiccups.

 

 

_30th._

 

Danny stretcheds her legs out under the table in the library, deeply engrossed in her new book when someone clears their throat behind her. She jumps and shoves the book under her bag before spinning around. Carmilla's standing there, bag hanging off of one shoulder.

"Can I sit?"

"Do you want me to actually answer you or are you just going to do it anyway?"

Carmilla rolls her eyes and takes the seat across from Danny.

"I thought I was actually going to die in class today. Why does Vector insist on giving us the most tedious labs ever? Do we really have to waste our time with all of those pointless titrations? I'm wasting enough of my life in this hell-pit as it is." Carmilla complains, dropping her bag to the floor with a thump.

"It's not that bad." Danny replies. Carmilla scoffs.

"You just like it because it's mindless, which is right up your alley." She snaps.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are extremely melodramatic?" Danny asks, raising her eyebrows. Carmilla smirks.

"All the time, Danny dearest. It's part of my charm."

Danny rolls her eyes.

"You're kind of like a walking Shakespeare sonnet. I feel like I'm constantly having to translate you into modern English."

Carmilla leans back against the chair.

"Nobody's asking you to translate me." She mutters. Danny scoffs.

"See? There you go again."

"Whatever, Beanpole." Carmilla starts to stand but Danny stops her.

"Hey, sit back down. I want to talk to you."

Carmilla eyes her for a second before dropping back down into her chair.

"You don't have to be so tense all the time. Not with me." Danny says quietly.

Carmilla's about to protest when she catches sight of something sticking out from under Danny's bag. Her expression softens immediately.

"I'm sorry." She whispers.

"Don't be. I'm just letting you know. Like I said, we don't have to be friends but we don't have to be strangers either." Danny says, leaning back in her chair.

"Who said I didn't want to be friends?" Carmilla says, glancing down once more at Danny's bag before staring intensely at Danny.

Suddenly, she's abruptly standing and grabbing her bag.

"Good luck with the game Friday." She says as she walks away.

Danny curiously watches her leave before moving her bag to see what it was that made Carmilla's demeanor change. She pales when she realizes Carmilla saw what book she'd been reading.

She picks up the copy of _The Death-Defying Pepper Roux_ and sighs.

 


	3. October

_2nd._

 

"Okay, ladies, listen up. This is the first game of the season so it's okay if things don't go very smoothly. Just make sure you guys have fun. But not like, so much fun that you play sloppy. So, you know, a moderate amount of fun." Danny rambles, gesturing wildly and ignoring Perry and Elsie's matching amused stares.

"Great pep talk, boss." Elsie giggles, leaning against her hockey stick.

"What I mean is, just do the best you can okay?" Danny says, she turns to Elsie and swats at her stomach with her stick. "And stop calling me that." 

After a brief bit of mayhem where everybody tries to high-five everybody, the team files out of the locker room and onto the bench, where Coach Ward is waiting.

"Perry, you're in net. Lawrence, you're starting center with Broadchurch on your left and West on your right. Havanaar and McGuire you're starting on defense." She calls out. 

Danny's sliding on her gloves when Perry leans into her side.

"You have an audience tonight, Danny." She says, nudging Danny's elbow and nodding towards the row behind the scorekeeper's booth. Danny glances over and her heart immediately drops into her stomach.

"Shit." She mutters to herself.

Sitting on the bleachers, with her hands shoved into her jacket pockets, is Carmilla. On her left, looking nervously out over the ice, is Laura. And on Laura's left, staring right at Perry and blushing furiously, is LaFontaine.

"Technically, I think LaF is here to see you." Danny says, grinning cheekily at Perry while trying not to internally combust. Perry gives her an exasperated look and shoves Danny's Gatorade bottle into her chest with a bit more force than Danny thought she was capable of.

"Don't do anything stupid." She says, and before Danny can ask what the hell she means, she's flipping her mask down and skating onto the ice.

Danny grumbles to herself and follows Maddie and Julie out onto the ice.

-

"Watch the left side!" Danny calls out to Maddie, who barely manages to avoid getting flattened. Maddie makes an aggravated noise and tears off after the other girl.

It's late in the 3rd period, less than 4 minutes left in the game, and they're up 2 to nothing thanks to Maddie's goal late in the first and Elsie's right at the start of this period, both of which Danny assisted on. They're doing well, but Danny can tell the Centreville girls are getting more and more annoyed at being shut out because they're becoming increasingly aggressive.

The right wing manages to get the puck away from Jess and is headed towards Perry and the goal. Danny out maneuvers the girl trying to cover her and races towards the goal alongside Maddie, Elsie and two other Centreville girls. The winger fires off a shot that Perry easily stops with her stick, but the rebound gets away from her and as she dives to attempt to cover the puck the winger's stick "accidentally" smacks into the side of Perry's mask.

All hell breaks loose.

Before Danny can even react, Maddie's gloves are on the ice and she has the Centreville winger by the jersey and up against scorekeeper's booth. Julie's kneeling next to Perry, who has her mask off and is grabbing at her ear. Danny speeds off towards Maddie as fast as she can and gets there just as Maddie cocks her fist back.

"Maddie! Let her go!" Danny yells, grabbing Maddie's arm before she can swing.

"Did you not see what she did!?" Maddie yells back, incredulous. 

"Let her go and calm down, we're going to win anyway." Danny says, dropping her stick and grabbing Maddie around the waist to keep her from lunging again.

Maddie squirms and the Centreville girl shoves at Danny's arm. The girl running the scoreboard watches the three of them, completely terrified.

"She dove into my stick, psycho!" The Centreville girl snarls, shoving at them both again.

"Seriously, Danny, let me at her." Maddie growls, struggling to get her arm free from Danny's grasp.

"Chill with the violence, Broadchurch!" Danny yells, shifting so that she was in between the two girls.

"Break it up, ladies!" The ref calls, finally skating over from where she'd been breaking up the shouting match between Elsie, Jess and the Centreville D-line.

"Ref, come on!" Maddie calls out. The ref shakes her head.

"Broadchurch, Wagner, to the box for the rest of the game." She says, jerking her thumb towards to bench.

"Fucking-" Maddie lunges again and Danny lifts the 5'4" girl off the ice and skates her backwards a few feet. 

The Centreville winger, Wagner, rolls her eyes and skates off to her team's penalty box.

"Calm down." Danny commands, gently setting Maddie back on her feet. Maddie growls under her breath.

"Why did you stop me from bloodying her nose? Huh?"

"Because you don't need to resort to hitting people! Especially not during the first game of the season and when we're up 2 to zilch with like 3 minutes left!" Danny reasons.

"Fine! But next time someone touches our goalie I'm swinging!" Maddie calls over her shoulder and she skates past Danny and towards the box.

"You swing at someone and you're on the bench!" Danny yells back, rolling her eyes as Maddie scratches her back of her head with her middle finger. "Mature." She mumbles to herself.

She looks over at the terrified scorekeeper, who's staring at her with complete doe-eyed admiration. Behind her, LaF is standing on the bleachers watching Perry with a worried expression while Laura tries to get them to sit down. Carmilla, however, is staring straight at Danny with this intense look that makes Danny's insides feel like she swallowed a helium balloon.

Danny nearly jumps out of her skin when Emily appears at her right elbow.

"She's cute." She remarks.

"She- I- what?" Danny sputters. Emily gives her a weird look.

"Scoreboard girl. I think she's in my Civics class. Jesus, Cap, chill. C'mon. Coach says Perry's fine, West is taking the faceoff."

Danny shakes her head and scoops her stick and gloves off the ice. She follows Emily back to center of the ice and catches Perry's eye.

"You okay?" She mouths.

Perry grins before saluting her.

She glances back over her shoulder at the trio and finds Carmilla still watching her with a smile.

"Fuck." She mumbles under her breath.

-

"You were pretty decent out there tonight, Slapshot."

Danny can't stop the smile from forming on her face.

"That's a new one." She says, turning around from tossing her hockey bag into the trunk of her Camero.

Carmilla's standing there, hands in her jacket pockets, grinning at her. Danny closes the trunk and leans against it.

"I like to mix things up sometimes." Carmilla says.

"I was a little surprised to see you here, honestly." Danny says, crossing her arms.

"Ah, well. LaFontaine wanted to see Perry and Laura..." Carmilla trails off.

"So they dragged you, kicking and screaming?" Danny teases.

"Something like that." Carmilla replies, smirking.

Danny laughs and shifts her weight against the trunk, uncrossing her arms. Carmilla eyes her for a second.

"You're not cold?" She asks, nodding towards Danny's tank top and bare arms.

"Nah, I run pretty hot. Especially after hockey." Danny replies.

Carmilla's eyebrow quirks but she says nothing.

"I should probably get home." Danny says, straightening up. Carmilla nods.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll see you tomorrow."

Danny moves to open her door but before she gets in, Carmilla calls out to her again.

"Hey, Danny?"

"Yeah?"

"It was cool, what you did tonight. Stopping Maddie from punching out that girl. Even though she pretty much deserved it." Carmilla says, her voice softening.

"Yeah, well. I'm the captain. I can't let my girls get themselves into bad situations, you know? And Maddie would have been benched and she needs a scholarship too." Danny replies, leaning against the door. Carmilla looks down.

"You're a good person, Danny." She whispers, so quietly that Danny almost doesn't hear her.

"You are too, you know." Danny replies. Carmilla shakes her head and starts to back away.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She says, and then she's gone.

Danny sits in her car with her forehead against the steering wheel until the fluttering in her stomach calms down.

It takes almost 20 minutes.

 

 

_7th._

 

"Why do you always doodle space stuff?" Carmilla asks, gesturing to the margins of Danny's notes where she's drawn a rocketship and some planets.

"I just really like space." Danny replies.

Carmilla nods and goes back to reading through their notes.

"I am so not ready for this test next week." Danny groans, dropping her head to the table.

Carmilla yawns and leans back in her chair. They're in the library during their free 6th period, attempting to study for their test next week.

"Aw, come on. It's gonna be fine." Carmilla says, reaching out to ruffle Danny's hair.

She realizes what she's doing and immediately draws her hand back like she's been burned. Danny doesn't move her head from off of the table, but her ears are turning bright red right before Carmilla's eyes.

"Did you mess up my part?" Danny asks, her voice muffled.

"A little." Carmilla admits.

"Fix it." Danny pleads.

Carmilla reaches out and gently brushes Danny's hair back into place while Danny tries really hard to ignore the fact that she can feel Carmilla's hand trembling. She also ignores the fluttering in her stomach that seems to have gotten much worse compared to last time.

"There." Carmilla breathes, drawing back her hand.

"Thanks." Danny mumbles.

Carmilla clears her throat and looks back over her notes. Finally, Danny lifts her head up.

"Come over."

"What?" Carmilla asks, freezing.

"Next week, I mean. Like, the night before the test. Come over and we'll study then." Danny says, fidgeting with the tear in her jeans.

"Oh. Yeah. Okay." Carmilla replies, still not looking up from her notes.

"Cool." Danny says, mentally kicking herself for how her voice went up an octave. If Carmilla noticed, she didn't show it.

The bell rang and they avoided eye contact the entire way to 7th period.

 

 

_13th._

 

"Carmilla! Bonita! It's nice to see you! Are you hungry?"

"Ma-"

"I have some snacks in the kitchen if you want-"

"Ma-"

"You look like you could eat-"

"Ma please!"

Danny gently steers a laughing Carmilla away from Beatrice.

"We really need to start studying because Carmilla has to leave here before 6:30 and it's already almost 4. If we get hungry you will be the first to know, vale? Prometo." She says, leaning down to kiss her mother on the cheek.

"Fine. Fine. Go get to work." Her mother waves her away with a smile.

"C'mon." Danny says to Carmilla, leading the way down to the basement.

"Your mom is pretty great." Carmilla says as they make themselves comfortable. Carmilla on the couch, Danny on the floor.

"Yeah, she is." Danny agrees, laughing.

"Which chapters are we on again?" Carmilla asks. Danny flips through her notes.

"Uhh...four through eight." She replies.

Carmilla flips through her textbook until she finds the right chapter.

They work in tandem, one reads through the their notes while the other looks up the additional information in the book. They take turn quizzing each other from the study guides at the end of the chapters and they get all the way to the last set of questions when Carmilla's phone rings. She pales when she sees the contact name.

"Hey, yeah, we're almost- I know. I know. I'm not going to be late. Mom, I know. Okay, okay, okay, calm down. Fine, I'll leave now. Bye."

She hangs up and tosses her phone to the side with a glare. Her entire body is tensed up and her hands are gripping the couch cushions so tightly, her knuckles are white. Danny studies her for a few moments before speaking softly.

"You know, if you ever need a place to crash..." She trails off.

"She's just...she gets stressed out easy." Carmilla explains. Danny nods.

"It's okay. I'm just offering. Sometimes it's nice to get away."

Carmilla lifts her head up and locks eyes with Danny. 

"I'm okay." She says.

Danny doesn't believe her for a second.

"Let me walk you out?" She asks. Carmilla nods.

They stand up and gather Carmilla's things and Danny walks her back upstairs. After a brief goodbye to Danny's parents, Danny's helping Carmilla put her stuff into her car.

"You know..." Carmilla trails off, not meeting Danny's eyes.

"What?"

"You're the first person to do that." Carmilla says.

"To do what, walk you to your car?" Danny asks, laughing. Carmilla smiles briefly.

"Offer me a place to crash. Most people just ask if something's going on and then..." She trails off and shrugs.

" _Well, people see what they expect, don't they? Or do they see what they choose?_ " Danny quotes. Carmilla's eyes snap up to hers.

"You read it?"

"I loved it."

"I didn't know the library had a copy." Carmilla muses.

"They don't. I had to order it." Danny admits.

"You- of course you did." Carmilla says with a laugh.

Danny tilts her head to the side but before she can ask Carmilla what she meant, Carmilla's sliding into her car.

"I'll see you in class." She calls out before shutting the door. 

Danny stands in her driveway for a long time after Carmilla's car disappears down the road.

 

 

_15th._

 

"Are you okay, Danny? You seem really distracted." Perry asks, grabbing her water bottle off the back of the net. Danny shakes her head.

"Yeah it's just..." She trails off, watching as Maddie makes a brilliant pass to Julie.

"Just..." Perry presses.

"I'm supposed to meet Carmilla at her house after practice to go over that English paper while her mom's at work. The one on _Hamlet_?" Danny explains. Perry nods.

"Yeah, I'm supposed to check over Laura's for her tomorrow. She's-"

"-horrible with symbolism. Yeah." Danny finishes.

"So, what's the problem?" Perry asks. Danny sighs.

"I don't know, I just can't shake the feeling-"

She's interrupted by a loud shout from the other end of the ice. Emily, Jess and Julie are all sprawled across the ice with a horrified looking Gina standing over them.

"I'm so sorry guys!" Gina exclaims.

"Reynolds! What did you do?" Danny asks.

"She tripped us all." Emily grumbles, trying to get back on her feet.

"Ah, hell." Danny mutters under her breath.

She abandons her talk with Perry to go give the other girls, especially Gina, pointers on how not to cause dogpiles with your own teammates. 

She avoids Perry's concerned stare for the rest of practice.

-

"Thanks for stopping by." Carmilla says as Danny climbs out of her car.

"It's no problem. You sure this is okay?" 

"Yeah, my mom won't be home for awhile so..." She trails off. Danny nods. 

"You got your paper?" Danny asks as they walk up the porch steps together.

"Yeah, right here." Carmilla replies, handing it to Danny as the two sit down on the steps.

'We can't go inside.' Carmilla had told her during class the other day. Danny hadn't asked why.

Danny reads over the paper, her grin getting broader.

"This is pretty good, Karnstein. You've been holding out on me." She teases.

"Shakespeare is easier for me to process. Except for those god-awful sonnets, of course."

Danny snorts.

"What?" Carmilla asks.

"Nothing." Danny dismisses.

"Seriously, Beanpole. What."

"It's just funny to me that you don't like his sonnets when you're basically a walking, talking, brooding-"

"I do not brood." Carmilla interrupts.

"If you say so." Danny replies. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Excuse me, what were you doing after you and Laura-"

"She broke up with me, it wasn't-"

"Yeah, I know."

"Wait, you know?" Danny asks, turning to face Carmilla. "How much do you know?"

"Not much." Carmilla replies, waving her hand dismissively.

"How much." Danny repeats, feeling the familiar ache in her chest start to build up.

"Just that Laura broke up with you because you're a senior and she's a junior and she didn't want to..." Carmilla trails off.

"Break my heart." Danny finishes, looking back down at Carmilla's paper but not comprehending the words. "Bit late for that." She mumbles.

"For what it's worth, Danny, I told her she was being dense." Carmilla mutters.

Danny doesn't look up.

"I mean, you're such a good person I don't understand why she would give you up-" Carmilla stops herself, clearing her throat. "Anyway, relationships are stupid."

Danny continues to stare down at the paper, which was getting blurrier by the second. If Carmilla notices Danny's wet cheeks, she doesn't mention it.

"Yeah." She agrees finally, swiping at her face with her sleeves while Carmilla ties her shoe.

Danny pretends not to know that she intentionally untied it a few seconds ago.

Just then a car pulls into the driveway and Carmilla leaps to her feet.

"Shit. Shit shit shit." She swears. "She wasn't supposed to be home until-"

"Hey, it's okay. I've got your paper, I'll just leave." Danny says, standing up next to Carmilla.

Carmilla's mother, not quite as tall as Danny but definitely tall, gets out of the car. Her dark hair is pulled back in a severe looking bun and her eyes are the same shade of gold as Carmilla's, but not nearly as warm. She's dressed in a black powersuit and Danny can practically feel the authority radiating off of her in waves.

"Unless you need me to stay." Danny mutters under her breath. She feels Carmilla take a slight step closer to her body.

"No, it's okay." Carmilla replies, attempting to smile, but it looks like a grimace.

"Sweetheart, who is this?" Her mother asks, looking Danny over. Danny fights the urge to shudder.

"Danny, mother. Danny Lawrence. She's my lab partner for Chemistry. She was just-"

"-I was getting my paper back from, Carmilla. She was looking over it for me. Your daughter is very smart." Danny interjects. She feels Carmilla's hand brush the side of her wrist briefly.

"Oh? Interesting." Carmilla's mother dismisses. "Sweetheart, you really should have told me we were having company. You know how I feel about guests."

Her eyes flash dangerously and every single cell in Danny's body screams at her to grab Carmilla and get her out of there.

"We didn't go inside. She actually just got here like 2 minutes ago." Carmilla lies.

"Very well. I'll see you inside." She walks past the two girls and into the house, slamming the door behind her.

"You'd better-"

"I don't want to leave you here." Danny interrupts, fixing Carmilla with a worried stare.

Carmilla shakes her head.

"I'll be fine, _Duchesse_ , it's okay."

Danny blinks a few times at the nickname, one of Danny's favorite characters from _Pepper Roux_ , and then everything clicks into place.

"Okay." She whispers softly, backing towards the car. 

Carmilla makes no move to follow her or stop her, so she unlocks the door and climbs in. She doesn't break eye contact with Carmilla until she has to.

The fluttering in her stomach has turned into a heavy weight and she trembles the entire ride home.

 

 

_20th._

 

"Hey, Beanpole, can you hand me that ruler?" Carmilla asks, gesturing towards the ruler lying on top of their textbook.

Danny grabs it and hands its it to her without looking up from her lab book. Carmilla takes it from her and their fingers brush. Danny blinks rapidly, trying to focus on the numbers in the book, but it's like everything is backwards. 

"23? No, no. Sorry. 32." Danny calls out. She groans and scrubs at her face with her hands.

"Here, let me look." Carmilla says, moving so she's beside Danny. 

She leans down and gently rests her chin on Danny's shoulder. Danny freezes. The fluttering in her stomach has moved up into her chest and she's trying hard not to give anything away.

"Yeah, you're right. It's 32." Carmilla says. "And I think the next one should be 12."

"Yeah." Danny breathes out.

Carmilla moves her chin from Danny's shoulder and stands up.

"You want to switch?" Carmilla asks.

"I'm sorry I'm so useless today, I don't know what my deal is." Danny mutters.

Except she knows exactly what her deal is. Her deal is the fluttering in her chest and the burning sensation on her shoulder where Carmilla's chin was.

"Don't worry about it, Gingersnap." Carmilla waves her off.

"Are you, uh, are you coming to the game this week?" Danny asks, fiddling with her pencil and not meeting Carmilla's eyes.

"More than likely. LaF wants to see Perry and they're going to drag me and Laura along I'm sure." She replies.

"Cool." Danny replies, causally, still flipping the pencil around her fingers.

Suddenly, Carmilla grabs the pencil out of Danny's hand. Danny looks up and sees Carmilla staring down at her hand with an entranced look on her face.

"What?" Danny asks. Carmilla blinks a few times and seems to come out of her trance, blushing lightly.

"Distracting." She mumbles, turning away quickly to busy herself with measuring out more of the copper.

Danny grins to herself.

 

 

_23rd._

 

Danny skates as fast as she can towards Smith's goal. Maddie quickly passes the puck to Elsie who fires off a shot that the Smith goalie deflects, but Danny's right there to get the rebound. She flicks her wrist and the puck sails past the goalie's left shoulder and into the back of the net. The siren goes off and she grins triumphantly. 

They were up 3-0 on Smith at the start of the 3rd and Danny just scored her second goal of the night. One more and she'd get her first hat trick of the season in just the second game.

As Danny skates towards the bench for her rest, she spots Carmilla, sandwiched between LaF and Laura, practically beaming at her. She nearly trips stepping up into the bench.

"You okay, boss?" Elsie asks, sitting down beside her and grabbing for her Gatorade bottle.

"Stop calling me that." Danny snaps. She checks the tape on her stick and hopes Elsie can't see how red her ears are.

No such luck.

"Are you blushing?"

"What? No!" Danny yelps, unconvincingly. 

Elsie gives her 'you're up to something, aren't you?' look but doesn't press the matter.

Later when she scores her third goal of the night, a hat trick, in the last three minutes of the game the first person she makes eye contact with is a cheering Carmilla.

-

"Three goals in one night, huh?"

Danny grins and spins around. Carmilla's standing there, smiling at her with her hands in her pockets again.

"Yeah, I guess I got lucky." Danny replies. Carmilla laughs.

"Yeah, definitely just luck." She teases.

"We still on for tomorrow night?" Danny asks, loading her bag into her trunk and shutting it.

"Yes. Although, I have to admit, I'm more looking forward to your mother's cooking than finishing that damn lab report." Carmilla replies. Danny grins.

"That's fair."

Carmilla takes a few steps closer to her.

"You can come over tonight, if you want." Danny says, quietly.

Carmilla stares at her for a few moments before shaking her head.

"I can't. Besides, you need your sleep after all that excitement." She smiles, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"Okay." Danny says.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Carmilla says and starts to walk away but Danny calls out to her.

"Hey, Broody Cat-"

"I do not brood."

"-Grumpy Cat, then."

"What?" Carmilla asks, rolling her eyes.

"Can I ask you something?" Danny says.

"How about we make a deal. If we want to ask each other something, we just ask it." Carmilla proposes.

"Okay." Danny agrees.

"So ask me." Carmilla says.

"Can I- I mean, would you let me..." She trails off. Carmilla arches an eyebrow at her.

"Spit it out, Beanpole."

"Could I hug you?" Danny mumbles out.

Carmilla stares at her. For a few moments, she thinks Carmilla didn't hear her but then her expression is softening and she's nodding.

"Yeah."

"Come here." Danny says quietly, opening her arms.

Carmilla closes the gap between them and steps into Danny's arms, placing her hands tentatively against Danny's shoulders. Danny holds her close for a few minutes before gently pulling back. 

"I'm sorry, I just-"

"I didn't mind." Carmilla interrupts, stepping back. She clears her throat. "See you tomorrow, Danny."

And then she's gone. 

Danny leans back against her car and stares up at the sky, counting stars until the fluttering in her chest dies down.

She gets up to two hundred and thirty four.

 

 

_24th._

 

"I don't understand what this one is asking." Carmilla mutters.

"Let me see?" Danny asks, shifting so she's sitting next to Carmilla with their backs against the couch.

"Number 11." Carmilla says, pointing to it.

Danny reads the question to herself, twice, and scrunches up her nose. She reads it a third time before she abruptly shuts the lab book and drops it to the floor with a thud. Carmilla quirks an eyebrow.

"My head hurts." Danny grumbles. Carmilla laughs.

"We can take a break?" Carmilla suggests.

Danny doesn't respond, instead she stretches her legs out in front of her and closes her eyes. Carmilla smiles to herself. 

"Can I ask you something?" She says. Danny opens one eye.

"We've been over this, Grumpy Cat. You wanna ask me something, just ask me."

Carmilla grins.

"Why do you like space so much? I mean, is there a story behind it or is it just...a thing?"

Danny sighs and opens her eyes, staring up at the basement ceiling.

"When I was 6, my parents took me to DC to the Smithsonian. The Air and Space museum. And I don't know, I just remember looking up at all the displays and being in complete awe of everything. And I think, even though I didn't know it at the time because I was just a kid, I think it was the realization that there's something out there that's bigger than us all. I mean, we're never going to truly know what we're made of. There's so much potential. Thousands of galaxies and millions of stars, all just waiting to be explored. I look up at the stars and how the constellations never change and...suddenly I don't feel so alone anymore."

"Danny." Carmilla's voice is barely a whisper and it's trembling like the flutters in Danny's chest.

She looks over at Carmilla, expecting her to be giving her a cheesy grin or making that face she makes when Danny says something that surprises her in a good way. But she's not. She's staring at Danny the same way Danny stares at the stars.

And then Carmilla's lips are on hers.

The kiss is desperate. Fueled by months of built up tension and things that Danny still doesn't fully understand but Carmilla's lips are soft and warm and she can't help but kiss her back with just as much passion. She lifts her hand and places it gently against Carmilla's jaw. Carmilla flinches.

"Hey." Danny whispers, pulling back so their lips are brushing with every word. "It's just me."

Carmilla grabs at her shirt and they're kissing again, rougher and sloppier. And it's all teeth and tongue and bruising lips and then Carmilla is in her lap and Danny's hands are around her waist and Carmilla's are gripping her shoulders.

"Wait." Carmilla breathes out, pulling away and dropping her forehead to Danny's.

"Okay." Danny whispers, smoothing her hands along Carmilla's lower back.

"This doesn't mean-"

"It doesn't have to mean anything." Danny interrupts. "If that's what you need."

Carmilla just stares at her for a few moments. 

"No feelings." She says.

"No feelings." Danny repeats.

"No strings." Carmilla says.

"No strings." Danny repeats again.

"Just two people who don't want to be lonely." Carmilla says.

"Just for fun." Danny replies.

Carmilla's mouth is on hers again and she's leaning back, dragging Danny down on top of her.

 

 

_28th._

 

"Fuck." Carmilla whispers as Danny's mouth moves down to her neck.

They're crammed into the library storage closet during their free 6th period and Danny has Carmilla backed against the wall, one hand on the back of her neck and the other gripping her hip. 

Danny mumbles something unintelligible against Carmilla's neck before biting down gently. Carmilla digs her barely there nails into Danny's lower back. She moves one hand to grab at the back of Danny's neck and guides her back up to her lips.

"This was- mmm, this was a brilliant idea." Danny mumbles against Carmilla's mouth.

"The storage closet?" Carmilla pants out.

"Well, yeah, but I mainly meant the us making out part. You're a really good kisser." Danny admits.

"You're not so bad yourself." Carmilla replies, grabbing Danny's face. "So keep at it."

"Yes ma'am." Danny says, grinning against Carmilla's mouth.

-

"Danny! Jesus fucking Christ, what the hell!?" Maddie shouts at her as Danny accidentally bumps into her for the third time this practice. 

"Sorry, I wasn't- sorry." Danny apologizes, sheepishly. Maddie rolls her eyes.

Danny circles back around towards Perry's goal and tries to clear her head, which is proving to be very difficult considering the images flashing through her mind.

Carmilla's body pressed between her own and the wall.

Carmilla's hands scratching down her back and tangling in her hair.

Carmilla's talented mouth kissing hers and then along her jaw and down to her neck.

The grin on Carmilla's face when Danny shut the door of the storage closet behind them and it dawned on her why Danny had pulled her in there.

Carmilla biting-

"DANNY!"

She jumps. Perry's staring at her like she's grown an extra head and waving her stick in Danny's face.

"I'm sorry, I'm distracted."

"By WHAT?" Perry asks, yanking her mask up. "You've knocked into Broadchurch like 3 times and tripped BOTH Emily and Elsie. What's going on with you? Have you eaten enough today?"

"No I- it's fine. I'm fine. It's just, homework and stuff." Danny mutters, fidgeting with the tape on the end of her stick.

"And stuff?" Perry presses.

"Nothing." Danny lies. Perry eyes her, but lets it go.

"Are you going to Kirsch's Halloween party this weekend?" Perry asks.

"I will if you will." Danny replies.

"Good, because I want to see LaFontaine and Laura said they were going." Perry says.

"When are you going to ask them out?" Danny asks.

Perry gives her a stern look and flips her mask back down. 

 

 

_31st._

 

Dressed up like an astronaut, Danny's doubled over laughing hysterically at Maddie and Julie's Halloween costumes.

"I told you she'd love it!" Julie exclaims, nudging Maddie's shoulder.

They're dressed up as bees, Julie wearing a nametag that says "2 Bee" and Maddie wearing one that says "Not 2 Bee."

"That's because she's a nerd." Maddie replies, grinning broadly as Danny tries to compose herself.

"Hey! Will! Ask us who we are!" Julie calls out as Will walks past. He stops.

"Who are you?"

"2 Bee..."

"...Or Not 2 Bee." Maddie finishes. 

He laughs and shakes his head and Danny bursts into another round of giggles.

"You guys..." He trails off, walking away to get another drink.

"Let's go get Gina!" Julie says, grabbing Maddie's arm.

"Gina's not going to get it, she hasn't read _Hamlet_." Maddie protests, but lets herself be dragged away anyway.

Danny's still fighting off the giggles when someone tugs on her elbow. She turns around and immediately chokes on her drink.

"Oh my god, Danny." Laura says, patting her on the back.

"S'fine. M'fine." Danny manages to gasp out. Laura, dressed as Lois Lane, looks over her with concern while Carmilla, dressed in a leather jacket and tight black shirt and an even tighter black skirt, stands behind her smirking.

"I like your costume." Laura says, stepping back as Danny straightens up.

"Thanks, Lois." Danny jokes, making Laura laugh.

"It's nice to see you." Laura says.

"Laura, we see each other every day in 7th and 8th." Danny says, smiling.

"I know but, like, outside of class." Laura says.

"I get it. It's nice to see you too." Danny replies, catching Carmilla's eye over Laura's head. She quirks an eyebrow at her and Danny feels her ears heating up.

"Oh! There's Elsie! I need to talk to her!" Laura exclaims. She reaches out and squeezes Danny's arm briefly before bolting off.

Carmilla steps up to Danny.

"Cute costume." She says, grinning.

"And what are you supposed to be?" Danny asks, looking over Carmilla and intentionally letting her eyes linger on Carmilla's thighs. 

"Bathroom." Carmilla replies.

"You're supposed to be a bathroom?" Danny asks, confused. Carmilla rolls her eyes, smiling.

"No, idiot." Carmilla replies, jerking her head in the direction of the stairs.

Danny follows her through the crowd and up the stairs, where Carmilla looks around to make sure nobody's watching before shoving Danny into the bathroom and closing the door behind them.

"Oh. Bathroom." Danny says, as Carmilla slides her hands into Danny's hair and pulls her down into a searing kiss.

"You looked like you needed this." Carmilla whispers against her mouth.

Danny's bends down a little so she can grip Carmilla's bare thighs and then lifts her up onto the sink. Carmilla wraps her legs around Danny's hips, hands still tangled in Danny's hair, and grins.

"How much time do you think we have before people start looking for us?" Danny asks, sliding her hands up Carmilla's legs and around to her lower back.

"Just enough." Carmilla replies and then they're kissing again.

They get 20 minutes of bliss before Danny's phone goes off with a "Where did you go?" text from Perry.


	4. November

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to let you guys know that I read all of your comments and I greatly greatly appreciate them. Sorry for the delay this chapter but AO3 had some weirdness going on and I was a little nervous about editing anything until it got cleared up in case it wouldn't save.
> 
> Also, things are going to get a little hot and heavy starting this chapter and- well. You'll see.
> 
> -L

_3rd._

 

"Why are these questions so obnoxiously tedious? Why do they need to know exactly how I measured out the calcium? Who cares what method I used to obtain the composition of the solution? What is the fucking point of all this?" Carmilla rants, tossing her pencil onto the table and running her hand through her hair.

Danny drops her forehead onto her arms with a loud groan.

"I need more coffee." She mumbles.

She hears Carmilla's chair scrape on the floor and feels Carmilla get up from their usual table at the coffee place. She sighs, exhausted. Staying up late to finish her Physics and Latin homework almost every night plus hockey practice twice a week was beginning to take its toll. Something warm bumps into her hand and she lifts her head up to find another cup of coffee sitting on the table in front of her. Carmilla sits back down empty-handed.

"What's this?" Danny says, looking down at the coffee.

"Hazelnut's your favorite, right?" Carmilla asks, picking up her pencil and sliding her lab book back towards her.

"Yeah, but-"

"I need all your synapses firing, Slapshot." Carmilla replies, not looking up from her book.

Danny smiles to herself and takes a sip.

"Thank you. What number are we on?" She asks.

"Seven." Carmilla replies.

Danny pretends not to notice the blush creeping up Carmilla's cheeks.

 

 

_6th._

 

"Elsie, watch your left side!" Danny calls out as one of the Eastwood wingers speeds past.

They fire off a shot at Perry, who barely manages to block it with her pad. Danny and Maddie both muscle their way to the puck and clear it out of the crease. They were up 2-1 at the middle of the 3rd but Eastwood was close to tying things up.

Julie manages to snag the puck and Danny races along side her to towards the goal. Just as Julie passes the puck towards her, one of the Eastwood defensemen slams into her side, elbow dropping into her ribs and their stick hooking her right skate and sending her crashing onto the ice hard.

She hears Maddie and Julie both swearing loudly and the ref's whistle blowing somewhere above her. She's having trouble breathing and her side feels like she's been punched by The Hulk.

"You alright, Thirteen?" The ref asks, leaning over her.

She groans in response.

"Coach!" The ref calls out and Danny can hear Coach Ward scrambling onto the ice.

"Lawrence!" She says, kneeling down next to her.

"S'fine. M'good. Jus' winded." Danny coughs out, squeezing her eyes closed.

Coach Ward grabs her just above her elbow and someone else (she thinks it's Elsie) grabs her other arm and they hoist her back onto her feet. She sways and feels Perry's goalie glove press against her back, keeping her upright.

"Guys, I'm okay." She mumbles.

"The hell you are!" Elsie exclaims.

They lead her over to the bench, where she flops down ungracefully. The players still sitting on the bench immediately move out of her way while Elsie and Perry hover behind Coach Ward.

"How's you head, Lawrence?" Coach Ward asks.

"My head is fine, it's my side. Pain's making me dizzy." She replies.

"You might have cracked a rib." Coach Ward says. "I'm going to have to pull you for the rest of the game just in case, head back to the locker room and let the medic take a look at you."

Danny groans.

"Somebody make sure Maddie doesn't kill anyone." She says as she staggers to her feet again.

"On it boss." Elsie says.

"Stop calling me that." Danny grumbles, making her way back towards the locker room.

She catches sight of Carmilla, Laura and LaFontaine all standing on top of the bleachers watching her with identical worried expressions. She raises her hand and gives them all a thumbs up causing LaF to grin and give her one back. Laura shakes her head but Carmilla's worried expression doesn't fade.

-

Her car door suddenly opening causes Danny to jump so badly that she cracks her knee on her steering wheel.

"What the fresh fucking hell?!" She yelps, turning to glare at her intruder.

"Easy, Beanpole. It's just me." Carmilla says, closing the door behind her and settling into Danny's passenger seat.

"You scared the crap out of me! Where did you even come from?" Danny asks, leaning back in her seat and wincing at the pain in her side.

"Where do any of us actually come from?" Carmilla replies, smirking.

"I walked right into that one." Danny says, rolling her eyes.

"Hey." Carmilla whispers.

"Hey." Danny replies, her annoyance softening into something else.

"How's your side?"

"It hurts but nothing's broken. Just a bad bruise." Danny replies, rubbing her injured side. "I'll be fine by the next game."

"At least you guys won?" Carmilla says, tilting her head to the side.

"True." Danny replies, grinning.

"You should have seen that freshman girl. The blonde one?"

"Emily."

"Yeah, you should have seen her after you left. She was brutal. It was like she was defending your honor." Carmilla teases.

"I am completely shocked that Maddie didn't kill that girl that hit me." Danny says. Carmilla laughs.

"Oh, she tried. She really did. But Julie and Elsie kept her on a short leash."

"Good."

"May I?" Carmilla asks, gesturing towards Danny's side.

Danny nods and moves her hand out of the way. She watches as Carmilla slowly reaches out and eases Danny's shirt up to reveal a patch of already lightly bruised skin stretching across Danny's ribs.

"Jesus." Carmilla breathes out.

"It's okay. I mean, it hurts like hell, but it's okay." Danny says.

Carmilla lightly traces a finger across Danny's skin.

"Come here." She mumbles out, leaning up into Danny.

The kiss is soft and warm and the opposite of their usual demeanor and Danny feels Carmilla's hand spread lightly across her bare side. She slides her hand to the back of Carmilla's neck and pulls her in closer.

"You sure you don't want to come over?" Danny breathes out against Carmilla's lips.

"I can't." Carmilla mumbles back. "But we have time."

She leans back in and kisses Danny harder, keeping her hand lightly pressed against Danny's bruised side. 

 

 

_9th._

 

"How's your side?" Perry asks as Danny takes her usual seat at the lunch table.

"It's better. I mean, it still hurts when I exercise but the bruise is fading now." She replies.

"I still can't believe you wouldn't let me deck that girl." Maddie grumbles darkly, poking at her corn with her plastic fork.

Julie rolls her eyes.

"Mads, you're already on notice from your scrap against that Centreville girl."

"Julie's right, you need to lay low." Danny says.

"Besides, the girl's suspended." Perry interjects, taking a bite of her apple.

"Wait, really?" Danny and Maddie ask at the same time.

"Yeah. I overheard Coach talking about it after the game. Three games for an illegal elbow." Perry replies.

"Hmm." Danny makes an appreciative noise and reaches for her water.

"So what did you do this weekend? I tried to call you Saturday but you never picked up." Julie says.

"Uh-" Danny stalls.

The truth was she'd spent the majority of her Saturday on top of Carmilla with her tongue in her mouth.

"Don't tell me. You locked yourself in your basement and played Destiny?" Maddie asks, smirking.

"Yeah, sorry. I'm lame." Danny lies, relieved.

"Nah, it's cool. I'd do the same thing if I could get away with it." Maddie says, grinning.

Julie and Perry both roll their eyes.

"You're both insufferable." Perry says.

"You have no idea." Danny mutters.

-

"Mmm, we're gonna be late for 7th." Danny mumbles as Carmilla kisses at her neck.

"We've got time." Carmilla mutters back.

Danny tilts her head as Carmilla kisses her way back up to her lips. Danny's hands slide from Carmilla's waist up to her shoulders, and she pulls her in closer. A muffled voice coming from outside of the library storage closet causes both girls to pause.

"I don't know, she's usually in the library during 6th but I don't see her."

Carmilla pulls back from Danny.

'Laura.' She mouths, mortified.

Danny puts her finger up to her mouth and then gestures towards the door. Carmilla nods and steps back. Danny steps over to the door and checks over her shoulder to make sure that Carmilla is out of sight before yanking the door open and sliding out. Laura whirls around.

"Found her!" She speaks into her phone, quickly hanging up. "Hey Danny!"

"Hey! Laura! What's uh- what's up?"

"What were you doing in there?" Laura asks, gesturing towards the door to the storage closet.

"Uh- just, um, just looking for something." Danny replies.

"What?"

"Oh, you know- some um, some printer paper." Danny lies.

Laura stares at her for a few seconds before slowly nodding her head.

"You know, Perry's looking for you." Laura says, waving her phone.

"Oh! I left my phone in my bag. On the table. Over there." Danny explains, lamely.

"Danny are you okay?" Laura asks, tilting her head to the side and looking Danny up and down.

"Yeah! Yes. I'm fine. I just have a lot of stuff to work on, you know?" She replies.

"Okay. Well, if you need to talk..." Laura trails off.

"I'm- thanks." Danny says.

Laura stares at her for a few more seconds before slowly walking off. Danny groans and runs her hands through her hair. She hears the storage closet creak open behind her and Carmilla walks up beside of her.

"You good?" Carmilla whispers, bumping her arm against Danny's.

"Yeah, I just feel weird lying to her." Danny mutters.

"You know we can't-"

"No, I know. I don't want to tell her either. I just feel weird is all." Danny says.

Carmilla glances around to make sure nobody is around before standing on her toes and kissing the side of Danny's head.

"I'll see you in 7th?"

"Of course." Danny replies.

Carmilla gathers her stuff from under the nearby table and takes off. Danny sighs.

"Futz." She mutters to herself.

 

 

_10th._

 

"Reynolds, you need to be quicker than that!" Danny calls out, circling around behind Perry's goal.

Gina skates around Toby's goal with the puck and passes it back to Ali, who immediately has it stolen by Julie.

"Nice stick handling, West! Foster, try to keep the puck closer to you!"

"Danny, I have something to tell you." Perry says, lifting up her mask. Danny stops in front of her.

"What's up?"

"LaFontaine asked me out on a date." Perry replies, grinning broadly.

"Oh my god, finally." Danny says. Perry rolls her eyes and swats at Danny with her glove.

"I'm serious!" She exclaims.

"Where are they taking you?" Danny asks, leaning against her stick and smiling.

"The movies. This weekend." Perry replies, blushing.

"That's so exciting!" Danny says.

"But I need a favor..." Perry trails off, looking sheepish.

"Yeah?"

"Help me pick out something to wear?"

Danny laughs and swats Perry's mask back down.

"Of course, you goober." She replies.

Perry raises her mask back up and winces as Emily fires a wicked slapshot right past Toby's right ear.

"Tobs! Watch it!" Danny yells.

"What about you?" Perry asks.

"What about me what?" Danny replies. Perry quirks an eyebrow.

"What's going on with you? Are you interested in somebody?" She asks. Danny sputters.

"What- no. No. I don't have time to be interested in anyone. Plus, it's too soon after Laura, I don't want..." Danny trails off.

"Would you tell me if you were?" Perry asks, suddenly serious.

"Of course." Danny replies.

"Really?" Perry asks again, regarding Danny seriously.

"Unless there were extenuating circumstances." Danny admits.

Perry stares at her for a few moments before nodding, apparently satisfied with her answer.

 

 

_13th._

 

"What are you working on?" Danny asks, leaning against the doorway of the art room.

Carmilla smiles but doesn't turn around.

"A mask. It's for my mixed media project." She replies.

Danny pushes off from the doorway and walks over to the table Carmilla's sitting at.

"Can I see it?" She asks. Carmilla nods.

Danny leans over Carmilla's shoulder to get a better look at the mask. It's made of clay and is made to cover only half the person's face. Carmilla's painted it black and is working on some intricate dark purple designs.

"Wow." Danny whispers.

"You think it looks okay? I'm worried she's not going to get the concept." Carmilla asks, turning to watch Danny's face.

"Layers, right? Sometimes the mask doesn't cover everything?" Danny guesses.

Carmilla's smile is blinding.

"Yes. Exactly." Carmilla replies, relieved. Her face sobers up quickly. "If someone as dense as you could understand it then I don't have anything to worry about."

Danny laughs.

"Hey, I'm not that dense." She says, nudging Carmilla's shoulder. Carmilla rolls her eyes but smiles.

"Maybe not all the time." Carmilla admits, smirking. "Don't break that pretty little brain of yours during the game tonight."

"Oh my god, that was like half a compliment! I might actually faint!" Danny jokes, straightening up and clutching her chest in mock dramatic fashion. Carmilla shoves at her.

"Shut up." She laughs.

"Make me." Danny shoots back, raising an eyebrow.

Carmilla raises one of her own and shrugs in an 'if you insist' manner and stands up. She grabs the back of Danny's neck and tugs her down, crashing their lips together. Danny moans and slides her arms around Carmilla's waist, pulling her in closer.

"Door." Carmilla mumbles.

Danny walks Carmilla backwards and over to the door of the art room. She reaches around her and shuts it quickly, all without breaking the kiss. Carmilla's hands slide down to Danny's chest and she pushes her away from the door and back towards the wall. Danny lets Carmilla guide her over to a spot between two cabinets.

"Carmilla." Danny says, gently pulling away from her lips.

"Hmm?" Carmilla hums, moving to kiss Danny's neck.

"You don't have to wear it with me." Danny whispers against Carmilla's ear.

Carmilla freezes. She pulls back and studies Danny's face for a few moments with an unreadable expression. Just when Danny thinks she's fucked up, Carmilla's kissing her again. Harder and deeper than before and her hands slide to Danny's chest and rest there gently.

Danny's chest feels like it's on fire.

-

"Dammit!" Danny swears as the Roosevelt center scored the tying goal with only two minutes left in the game.

Perry leans back against the goal and angrily bangs her stick on the ice a few times. Elsie skates up on Danny's right.

"What now, boss?" She asks.

"First of all, stop calling me that. Second of all, get me the damn puck." Danny replies, tearing off towards the face-off circle where Maddie is waiting.

Maddie wins the face-off and passes the puck back to Julie, who does a good job of holding off two of the Roosevelt girls. As soon as she gets a clear shot, she passes the puck up the ice towards Ali who fires it over to Elsie only seconds after it touches her stick. Danny races up the left side of the ice, trying to shake off the Roosevelt center as Elsie almost loses the puck to the two defensemen. She keeps control of it and as the clock winds down to under a minute, she fires it over to Danny.

Danny shuts out everything around her.

All she sees is the Roosevelt goalie, tracking her every move. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Julie and Ali racing in for the screen and she waits for them to pass in front of the goalie before she aims, flicks her wrist and fires.

The puck, with perfect precision, sails between Elsie and the trailing defensemen and right in between the goalie's pads.

The goal siren goes off at the same time as the buzzer.

The crowd is deafening. Danny is almost bowled over as Maddie, Julie and Elsie all slam into her cheering. She feels more thumps as Ali and the rest of the team swarm her.

"Okay! Okay, okay, okay. Get off me!" She laughs, shoving at a bouncing Emily.

They all skate over to Perry and one by one tap her on top of her helmet. When it's finally Danny's turn, Perry slings an arm around her and the two skate back towards the bench together, side by side.

"You're still coming over tomorrow, right?" Perry asks, flipping her mask up.

"Of course. We've gotta get you lookin' super cute for your date." Danny teases. Perry grins.

As they step off of the ice and into the bench, Danny hears someone yelling her name. She looks up to find Laura waving enthusiastically and jumping up and down. LaFontaine is standing beside her, beaming over at Perry. Danny waves back, grinning. She feels Perry's elbow in her back and she turns to look at her.

"What?" She asks.

"Seriously, please help me tomorrow." Perry begs in a low voice.

Danny laughs and pats Perry on the back.

-

Danny makes her way across the parking lot towards her Camero, her equipment bag slung over her shoulder. It was too cold to wear just her tank top out like usual so she had tugged on her letterman jacket before she left the locker room. She slows her pace when she notices someone leaned against the hood of her car.

"Hey there, Slapshot." Carmilla calls out. Danny grins.

"Hey yourself." Danny replies, dropping her bag next to the car. "Where'd you go? I looked for you after the game."

"It got a little loud for me. But don't worry, I didn't miss your heroics." Carmilla teases, smirking.

"Oh, please." Danny says. She can feel her ears burning.

Carmilla just laughs at her.

"Those girls adore you." Carmilla says, her voice softening.

"Oh yeah? What about you?" Danny teases, leaning down so her face is inches away from Carmilla.

Carmilla doesn't answer. She shoves Danny backwards and rolls her eyes.

"I'm kidding." Danny says. Carmilla smirks.

"I know."

Carmilla crosses her arms as she shivers. Danny eyes her for a second before taking off her letterman jacket and stepping forward to drape it over Carmilla's shoulders.

"What are you doing?" Carmilla asks, pulling the jacket tighter around herself.

"You're cold. I'm not." Danny replies, shrugging.

"Thanks." Carmilla whispers, not meeting Danny's eyes.

Danny shrugs against and leans against the car next to Carmilla.

"You can just give it back to me when you come over to study on Sunday."

Carmilla nods but doesn't say anything.

"Did you know LaFontaine finally asked Perry out on a date?" Danny asks. Carmilla laughs loudly.

"Yeah. Laura told me. It's about damn time. Those two have been dancing around each other since middle school." She replies, shaking her head.

"Get this, Perry wants me to come over tomorrow to help her pick out an outfit." Danny says. Carmilla cackles.

"Ah, hell." Carmilla says, still grinning. "Why are people so ridiculous about romance? I think the whole concept is stupid."

"Why?" Danny asks.

"I just don't like the idea of having to compromise myself for another person. Sex is fine but, commitment? Having to win someone over and then constantly worry that they're going to change their mind and walk out on you? It just doesn't make sense to me." Carmilla replies.

Danny remains silent for a few moments, staring up at the stars.

"You have a point there." She whispers.

Carmilla leans into her and rests her head on Danny's shoulder.

 

_14th._

 

"So the blue one or the purple one?" Perry asks, holding up two sweaters.

"Perry, you know that I'm colorblind and those two look like exactly the same color to me." Danny replies, pinching the bridge of her nose.

She's spent the last 2 hours going through Perry's entire wardrobe trying to help the girl find the perfect outfit for her date.

"Oh. Right." Perry says, dropping both sweaters onto her bed.

"Per, I'm pretty sure no matter what you wear they're going to think you look amazing." Danny says, turning to face Perry. Perry blushes.

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Danny grins at Perry, who grins back.

"I just don't want to mess this up, you know? I really really like them." Perry replies, looking down at her feet.

"Hey, I get it. You've had a crush on LaFontaine since like, what? Sixth grade?" Danny asks. Perry nods.

"Ever since we had to dissect that frog and I started crying and they yelled at those boys to leave me alone."

Danny laughs.

"God, that story never gets old. I can just picture you bawling your eyes out and LaF threatening to punch out a bunch of nerdy, pre-pubescent boys." She says.

"They've always been on my side, you know?" Perry says, looking up to catch Danny's eye. "I guess it just took them a little longer than me to realize what's there between us."

Danny swallows hard.

"I get that." She replies, trying to ignore how her thoughts immediately jumped to Carmilla's face.

 

 

_15th._

 

"I don't understand any of this." Carmilla growls, dropping down onto the couch with a huff.

"Once you figure out how to calculate for specific heat-"

"Which is exactly my problem, Lawrence, I keep getting my formulas mixed up."

"Well, I'll help you work through it." Danny reasons, shifting so she was leaned back against the couch.

Carmilla grumbles into the couch cushion. Danny laughs.

"C'mon. We'll fix it." Danny says, leaning her head back against Carmilla's hip.

"Just give me a few minutes or else I'm going to get a migraine." Carmilla mutters, shoving lightly at the side of Danny's head.

"Whatever you want, Grumpy Cat." Danny replies, laughing.

Carmilla rolls over on her back and watches as Danny stands up and stretches. She bites her lip as Danny's shirt rides up, showing off her hip bones and toned stomach.

"What if I want something that doesn't involve studying?" Carmilla says, quirking an eyebrow.

Danny lowers her arms and regards Carmilla curiously.

"And what would that be?" She asks.

Carmilla raises her finger and gestures for Danny to 'come here.' Danny smirks and slowly makes her way over to the couch. She leans over Carmilla, who grips the front of her shirt and tugs her down. Carmilla kisses her hard, over and over again until Danny sinks down on top of her. She slides her hands up Danny's back and into her hair. Danny settles in between Carmilla's legs, planting her hands onto the couch on either side of Carmilla's head.

"How's your headache?" Danny mumbles, trailing her lips down to Carmilla's neck.

"You keep kissing me like that and I'll never have another headache ever again." Carmilla says, digging her nails into the back of Danny's neck. 

Danny bites down lightly and Carmilla moans.

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs startles them both.

"Shit." Carmilla hisses, shoving at Danny.

Danny rolls off of Carmilla and onto the floor, where she quickly reaches out and grabs her textbook and pretends to read. Carmilla sits up and rakes her hand through her hair before grabbing Danny's notebook and opening it just as Danny's mom rounds the corner.

"Hola, girls! How's the studying?" Beatrice asks.

"It's uh- it's fine, ma." Danny replies, not trusting herself to look up from her textbook.

"Danny's really smart, Mrs. Lawrence." Carmilla says, smiling up at Danny's mom. Danny's chest flutters again.

"Would you like to stay for dinner, Carmilla?" Beatrice asks.

"Oh- I um, I can't. My mom..." Carmilla trails off.

Danny looks up and catches her mom's eye. She gives her a look and her mother's protest stops before it starts.

"How about you ask her if you can come to dinner tomorrow night? Sí? I'm making Danny's favorite." Beatrice offers.

"What's that?" Carmilla asks, glancing over at Danny.

"Paella." Danny and her mother respond in unison.

"I don't think I've ever had that before." Carmilla says. "I'll ask her."

"Bueno. I'll let you girls get back to your studying." Beatrice says, going back upstairs.

The two sit in silence for a few moments.

"You don't have to actually-"

"I know. I want to." Carmilla interrupts, looking down at her hands.

"My mom's paella is pretty great." Danny says, grinning.

"I can't make any promises." Carmilla admits, looking up.

Danny stands up and moves over to her. She leans down and kisses her gently on the cheek.

"No worries. We're here if you can." She says.

They both know she's not just talking about dinner.

 

 

_16th._

 

"I'll get it!" Danny calls out as the doorbell rings. 

She races through the living room and slides across the hardwood floor in her socks before grabbing the doorknob and twisting it open.

"Hey." She breathes out, smiling.

"Hey." Carmilla replies, smiling back.

"I'm glad you could come over." Danny says, stepping aside so Carmilla can come in.

"Me too." Carmilla replies honestly.

"Is that Carmilla, querida? Tell her dinner is almost ready!" Beatrice calls out from the kitchen.

"Dinner is almost-"

"I heard, Gingersnap." Carmilla says, rolling her eyes and smiling.

Danny grins at her and gestures for Carmilla to follow her into the kitchen. Her dad has already set the table and is carrying a basket of bread over to it.

"Hey, Carmilla!" He says, smiling brightly when he sees her.

"Hey, Mr. Lawrence." Carmilla replies.

"Oh no, don't call me that. My students call me that and it makes my head hurt to hear it at home." He jokes, winking at her.

"Hello, _Mr_. Derek." Carmilla jokes back, grinning.

"I like her." Derek says, turning to Danny and pointing at Carmilla.

Danny rolls her eyes as Carmilla laughs.

-

"What does your mother do, Carmilla?" Beatrice asks.

Danny feels Carmilla tense up next to her. She sets her fork down.

"Ma, I don't-"

"She's a lawyer." Carmilla replies. "A defense attorney, to be exact."

"And what about you, querida? What do you want to be?" Beatrice asks. Carmilla chews thoughtfully.

"Art. Maybe not an artist, per say. But something to do with art." Carmilla replies.

"You could always be an art historian. Work in a museum." Derek interjects.

"Dad, not everybody is as excited about history as you are." Danny teases. He rolls his eyes.

"I just think history is neat." He defends, sticking his tongue out at her.

"Cuántos años?" Beatrice asks, pointing at Derek with her fork.

"Old enough to know better-" He starts.

"-but young enough to not care." Danny finishes, laughing.

Beside of her, Carmilla grins. She feels Carmilla's hand slide onto her leg and squeeze briefly before disappearing.

-

"You know, I've never seen your room." Carmilla says, leaning against the kitchen counter as Danny washes up the dishes.

"I'll show you after I finish these." Danny promises. "But, it's a little cramped."

"I don't mind." Carmilla says. 

Danny finishes up the dishes and dries her hands off on the dishtowel.

"Come on." She says, jerking her head in the direction of the stairs.

This time, instead of going down to the basement, Danny leads her upstairs to a narrow hallway overlooking the living room. She walks her all the way to the door on the end. A street sign that says "Lawrence Ave." hangs on the door. Carmilla giggles.

"Don't judge." Danny says, pointing at her.

She opens the door and flips on the light.

The room is small with a slanted ceiling. At the far end of it is Danny's bed. None of her pillowcases match, and neither do her sheets and comforter. To the left is a desk covered in papers and textbooks. Danny's equipment bag lies on the floor next to her desk chair. But to the right is a magnificent mural of Earth as seen from space. Hundreds of stars cover the wall.

"Wow." Carmilla whispers.

"My dad painted it for me when I was little." Danny says.

"Danny, that's..." She trails off.

"Amazing?" Danny asks.

"Yes." Carmilla agrees, walking up to the wall and tracing her hand along it.

Danny simply stands back and enjoys the view of Carmilla in front of the stars.

 

 

_20th._

 

"No game this week? What are you going to do with yourself?" Carmilla teases, taking a sip of her coffee.

They're seated at their usual table in the coffee shop going over their lab reports. Danny laughs and shakes her head.

"Actually get some rest?" Danny replies.

Carmilla laughs.

"Good idea."

Danny drains the last of her coffee and slides her lab book back towards her. 

"Did we get the same thing for 18?" She asks. Carmilla nods.

"Yeah, and 19. But I have no idea what to put for 20." Carmilla admits.

"Neither do I." Danny says.

Carmilla shrugs.

"Bullshit it?"

"Bullshit it."

They both grab for their pencils and scribble down an answer in silence. After she's finished, Danny leans back in her chair and waits for Carmilla to finish writing.

"Did you know Perry and LaF are a thing now?" She asks. Carmilla nods her head.

"Yeah, Laura told me." Carmilla replies.

She finishes writing her answer and looks up.

"Hey, Beanpole?"

"Yes?"

"I had a really nice time with you and your parents." Carmilla says, quietly.

"Yeah, me too. I'm glad you could-"

She's cut off by the sound of Carmilla's phone ringing. Carmilla groans and digs it out of her pocket. Her posture immediately stiffens. Danny sits up.

"Hey mom, I- what? No, I know I was- But we were- Me and Danny, mother. Yes. No. But we're working on- Okay. Okay, you're right. Okay. I'm leaving now. I know I'm already late. Bye."

Carmilla hangs up and drops her head into her hands.

"Let me take you home." Danny offers, softly.

Carmilla's head shoots up.

"What?"

"I can drop you off around the block but let me drive you home. It'll be faster than you walking and you won't be in as much trouble." Danny says.

"I'm already in trouble." Carmilla admits, gathering her things. "But it'd be nice to be with you for a bit longer."

Danny freezes in the middle of getting her keys. Carmilla seems to realize what she said because she refuses to look Danny in the eye the entire way to the car. Danny starts the car and looks over at Carmilla, who's shivering in the passenger's seat. She leans around and reaches into the backseat, grabbing her letterman jacket she had taken off earlier and drops it into Carmilla's lap.

Carmilla puts it on without a word.

Minutes later, Danny's parked a few houses down from Carmilla's.

"Call me if you need anything." Danny says as Carmilla turns to open the door.

Carmilla turns back around and leans across the car to kiss Danny firmly on the lips. She pulls away after a few moments and opens the door.

"Your jacket." Carmilla says, starting to pull it off. Danny waves her hand at her.

"I'll get it back from you in class." Danny says.

Carmilla stares at her for a few moments before nodding and shutting the door.

Danny doesn't miss the way Carmilla pulls the jacket tighter around herself as she walks away.

 

 

_23rd._

 

"Wait, is it supposed to be green like this?"

"Yes I- wait, wow. That's really bright."

"Right? Maybe we put too much-" 

"We didn't put too much, Beanpole."

"But how come-"

"I think it was the heat."

"Ohhh, yeah. Yeah. We must have heated it too fast. Dammit."

Danny groans and goes to dump the solution into the waste bucket.

"I'll get another beaker." Carmilla mutters, moving to the supply shelf.

"How much time to we have left?" Danny asks, measuring out more of the chemicals.

Carmilla looks up at the clock and shrugs.

"We have enough time." She says.

Danny starts heating the solution again, this time turning the burner down. Carmilla leans against the counter beside of her.

"Are you going anywhere over break?" She asks.

"Nah. My dad's family all comes here but most of my mom's family lives in Spain so we don't see them until Christmas. My parents usually go out of town to go shopping after, though. They're weird like that." Danny replies, watching the beaker carefully.

Carmilla nods and studies the clock.

"What about you?" Danny asks, glancing back at Carmilla.

"My mom's going out of town for business. But we don't actually celebrate Thanksgiving, anyway." Carmilla explains.

"Well, you're more than welcome to come with us to my uncle's." Danny says, staring intently at the beaker.

Carmilla looks over at her but doesn't say anything. Instead she turns around and leans down next to Danny, letting their arms brush.

-

"Hey LaFontaine." Danny greets, sitting down at her usual spot at the lunch table. This time LaFontaine is seated on Perry's other side.

"Hey Danny." They reply. Perry grins.

"This is so nice. Isn't this nice?" Perry asks, hooking her arm through LaF's.

Danny and LaF exchange amused glances.

"I am so tired of turkey sandwiches. Like seriously, so tired. Oh hey, LaF." Maddie says, dropping down into her chair.

"So get something else." Julie reasons as she takes her seat.

"What else am I going to get? It's a school cafeteria. Everything else is gross." Maddie complains.

"The pizza's not that bad." Danny says. Maddie gives her a look.

"It's thin crust." She says, horrified.

"So?"

"So? Danny, I'm from Chicago. That's like a sin." Maddie argues, grabbing for her sandwich.

The others laugh.

"Hey guys." Laura says, taking the seat across from LaFontaine.

Maddie stops chewing and looks over at Danny, who shakes her head. Julie shifts some of her things to the side so Laura has more room.

"Hey Laura." LaFontaine and Perry reply in unison.

"Ah, jeez. You saps are already talking like each other." Maddie teases.

"Where have you been, Mads, they've always done that." Danny says, winking at Perry.

Perry elbows her and rolls her eyes.

"What are you guys doing for Thanksgiving?" Julie asks.

"Chicago." Maddie replies, still chewing her sandwich.

"I'm going with Perry to visit her family in Vermont." LaFontaine says. Perry grins at them.

"I'm staying here." Laura says, shrugging.

"Me too." Danny replies. "What about you, Julie?"

"I'm staying here too." Julie says.

"I'd shove in you in my suitcase if I could." Maddie says.

Julie rolls her eyes and shoves at her.

"Carmilla mentioned something about your uncle's house, Danny?" Laura asks.

Danny chokes on her water.

"Oh- uh, yeah. My mom, like, adores her and wanted me to invite her over for Thanksgiving. So..." She trails off, ignoring Perry's stare.

Laura laughs.

"You should try to talk her into going with you. It'd be good for her." Laura says.

"Yeah, maybe it'll help her tone down the brooding." LaFontaine teases.

"She doesn't brood." Danny and Laura reply at the same time.

Laura's eyes snap up to Danny's and the two stare at each other for a moment.

"I really hate turkey sandwiches." Maddie says.

Danny kicks her under the table.

 

 

 

_26th._

 

"Danny! Carmilla's here!" Danny's dad calls from the living room as Carmilla's car pulls into the driveway.

Danny races up from the basement and out the front door.

"Hey, there you are." Danny says, walking out to Carmilla's car.

"Hop in, I want to show you something." Carmilla says, gesturing towards the passenger's seat.

Danny eyes her for a moment before getting in.

"Where are we going?" Danny asks.

"The park." Carmilla replies.

"Why the park?" Danny asks as Carmilla pulls out of her driveway.

"Like I said, I want to show you something." Carmilla replies.

They sit in silence for a few minutes before Carmilla speaks up again.

"I'm sorry I couldn't go with you to your uncle's." She whispers.

"Hey, no, don't worry about it. I get it. I just figured I'd make the offer, you know?" Danny replies.

"And trust me, I really appreciate it." Carmilla replies.

-

"Seriously, why are you bringing me out here. Are you going to murder me and bury me out in left field like Hoffa?" Danny asks as the two hike towards the baseball field.

Carmilla scoffs.

"First of all, Lawrence, Hoffa was allegedly buried under a football stadium, not baseball. Secondly, if I wanted to murder you we wouldn't have taken my car."

Danny shrugs. She had a point.

"Then why-"

"Oh my god, Danny seriously shut up and come here." Carmilla growls and grabs Danny's wrist, dragging her towards the gate of the park baseball field.

She swiftly knocks the lock off and shoves Danny though it. As soon as Danny steps onto the outfield she freezes.

Stars.

Millions and millions of stars glitter overhead.

The field’s location in the middle of the park blocked out all of the city’s light pollution and with the field lights off the result is spectacular.

“I figured you’d want to see this, what with your nerdy obsession with space.” Carmilla whispers.

Danny doesn't say a word nor does she look away from the sky. Instead, she blindly reaches out until she finds Carmilla’s arm. She gently tugs Carmilla’s hand free of her jacket pocket and laces their fingers together. Carmilla is very glad it's dark and that Danny is too busy looking up so she cant see the blush spreading across her face.

 

 

_27th._

 

"Top left. In that window." Carmilla calls out, pointing at a sniper. Danny takes him out.

"See any more? I'm still being shot at." Danny asks, backing her character up behind some boxes.

"Your right. Yeah, right there!" Carmilla points again.

"Checkpoint. Thank god." Danny mutters, setting the controller down.

"That was intense." Carmilla says, laughing.

"You know you're really good at being my spotter." Danny says, stretching her legs out.

"Which is great to hear considering my aim is horrendous." Carmilla replies.

"I'll do the aiming, you tell me where to shoot." Danny says.

"Deal." Carmilla replies, resting her head against Danny's shoulder.

"You okay?" Danny asks, looking over at her. Carmilla nods.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She says. Danny nods. She shifts and puts her arm around Carmilla.

Carmilla tilts her head and gently starts kissing Danny's neck. Danny's arm around her tightens. Carmilla hits that particular spot just under her ear with her teeth and Danny shivers. She turns, gathering Carmilla up in her arms before guiding her down to the floor.

"Oh, I'll have to remember that one." Carmilla teases. Danny grins at her before leaning down to kiss her.

Their kisses get rougher and deeper. Carmilla's hands trail under Danny's shirt to scratch at her sides.

"Danny." Carmilla breathes out, pulling back.

Danny pauses.

"Let's go upstairs?"

-

They stumble into Danny's bedroom, all tangled limbs and swollen lips. Danny kicks the door closed behind her as Carmilla tugs at her shirt. She lifts her arms up so Carmilla can yank it off and fling it out of the way. Carmilla then strips off her own shirt and tosses it in the same direction as Danny's. 

Their lips crash together again as Danny's arms go around Carmilla's waist. She walks her back over to her bed and gently lifts her up before guiding them both down onto the mattress. Her hands trail up Carmilla's body and she guides the straps of her bra down, kissing her shoulders as she reaches around to unhook it. Carmilla helps her tug it off.

She slowly kisses her way along Carmilla's chest, her hands undoing Carmilla's belt and then her pants. Carmilla's hands move out of her hair to help her push off her pants and they get tossed somewhere too. She hooks her fingers around Carmilla's underwear, dragging it down slowly before Carmilla kicks it off.

She moves back up to Carmilla's mouth, kissing her hard before pulling back.

"Tell me if I do something you don't like." She mumbles against her mouth.

"Don't worry, I will." Carmilla teases.

Danny slowly kisses her way down Carmilla's chest, to her stomach and then her hips and then her thighs. She kisses her way up the inside of Carmilla's thigh and at the first swipe of her tongue, Carmilla's hands are in her hair.

Later, when she comes with Danny's hands gripping her sides and her mouth between her legs, she sees stars.

And not just the ones on Danny's wall.

-

Hours later, they're naked and panting. Hands pressed in between thighs and inside of each other. Carmilla bites down on Danny's shoulder below her and Danny moans. She feels Carmilla's entire body tense before her release ripples through her. It's enough to send Danny over the edge too.

"Jesus." Carmilla mutters, collapsing on top of Danny.

Danny grins.

"The feeling is mutual." She says.

Carmilla laughs and shifts so she's lying next to Danny with her head on her chest.

"The benefits portion of this 'friends with benefits' deal just got sweeter." Carmilla says, running her fingers across Danny's side.

"Oh, so we're friends now? All it took was multiple orgasms." Danny jokes.

Carmilla pinches her side.

"Shut up." She mumbles.

She looks over at the clock on Danny's desk and tenses. 

"Don't worry about it. You can stay here." Danny whispers, trailing her fingers down Carmilla's back.

Carmilla immediately relaxes.

"This doesn't have to be one of those 'I have to leave after or it'll mean something' things. If it's late or you're worn out, you can stay." Danny reasons.

"You're a good person, Danny." Carmilla mumbles.

"So are you." Danny whispers back.

"I'm not as good as you seem to think I am." Carmilla replies, shaking her head.

Danny's fingers stall briefly. She leans down and kisses Carmilla gently on her forehead. Carmilla laughs.

"Careful with that. You'll get attached to me." She jokes.

"Not likely." Danny lies.

 

 

_30th._

 

"I hate turkey sandwiches."

"Mads, if you mention the turkey sandwiches again I'm going to stab this fork in your eye." Julie grumbles.

"Jesus. Fine." Maddie says, shifting her chair away from Julie's.

"What's wrong with you, Julie?" Laura asks.

"West is upset because she got food poisoning at Thanksgiving." Danny replies. 

Everybody winces.

"I don't want to talk about it." Julie mumbles.

"If it makes you feel any better, Perry and I got lost because Google Maps insisted her Aunt's house was in the middle of a lake." LaFontaine offers.

"Yeah, that does make me feel a little better." Julie says, laughing. Laura grins.

"What about you, Danny? How was your break?" Perry asks.

"Oh- uh, it was pretty boring. I just stayed in." Danny lies.

She tries to block out the images of Carmilla naked and underneath her.

Carmilla's thighs on either side of her ears.

Carmilla's fingers sliding inside-

"DANNY." Maddie practically yells in her face.

"I- what? Sorry?" Danny snaps back to reality.

"Julie asked if you were going to eat your banana." Laura says, slowly.

"Oh. No. Here." She hands the banana over to Julie.

"Everything okay, Danny?" LaFontaine asks, leaning around a suspicious Perry.

"Oh yes. Everything's fine." Danny replies, grinning.

 


	5. December

_3rd._

 

"If I have to do another set of titrations I'm going to fling myself out of that window."

"Go ahead, Karnstein, we're on the first floor."

Carmilla groans as Danny focuses on counting the drops of water going into the tray. Danny chuckles.

"What are you groaning about? You're not the one actually doing the work."

"Because I will fall asleep if I have to do something this mundane." Carmilla replies, leaning against the counter beside of Danny.

"Last one." Danny mutters, focusing on the last empty space in the tray.

Carmilla shifts closer to her. Danny tries to keep her focus on counting the drops of water, but she can feel Carmilla's eyes on her hands.

"Don't do that." Danny whispers.

"Do what?" Carmilla asks.

"That. Staring at my hands like that, it's throwing me off." Danny replies.

"I'm not-" Carmilla starts to protest but stops when Danny looks over at her.

She sighs loudly and stares up at the ceiling as Danny smirks to herself and goes back to counting drops of water.

-

Danny fires off a shot that sails between Perry's elbow and her body.

"Crap." Perry mutters, lifting her mask as Danny circles back around the goal.

"Watch your glove side." Danny says.

"I was, but I lost track of where you were aiming for a split second." Perry replies. "Hit me again."

Danny grabs another puck from the pile with her stick and skates it out towards center ice as Perry flips her mask back down. She spins around and skates back towards Perry, who's following her every move. She fakes a shot to her left and then fires right. Once again, the puck sails past Perry and into the net. Perry groans.

"I can't follow you for some reason. You're too good at aiming without giving anything away." Perry complains as Danny skates up to her. Danny laughs.

"Want me to tone it down?"

Perry swats at her with her glove.

"No, you overgrown puppy, I do not want you to go easy on me." She replies.

"Want me to go again?" Danny asks. Perry sighs.

"No, it's getting late and technically practice ended a half an hour ago. We should get going." She says.

Danny helps her gather up the pucks and clear the goal and the two head back towards the locker room.

"Danny, can I ask you something?" Perry says. Danny pauses in locking the equipment closet.

"Yeah, of course." She replies.

"Is there something going on with you?" Perry asks, sitting down on the bench and watching Danny carefully.

Danny slowly makes her way over to her cubby, dropping her gloves into her equipment bag and hanging her helmet up.

"What do you mean?" Danny asks. Perry sighs.

"I mean, you've been acting differently. Some days you seem like you're really happy and then other times you act like your brain is hundreds of miles away. Is there something going on?"

Danny sighs and sits down on the bench next to Perry.

"It's...complicated." She replies. Perry stares at her for a few moments.

"Meaning you can't tell me."

"It's not my story to tell." Danny says, turning to look at Perry.

"But you're involved." Perry guesses.

"Yes." Danny replies.

Perry stares at her for a few more moments before nodding.

"Okay."

 

 

_4th._

 

"On the right!" Danny calls out as one of the Hollybrook girls tries to steal the puck away from Becca.

Becca dodges her and passes the puck up the middle to Julie, who fires it past the goalie. Danny cheers from the other end of the rink. The next few minutes pass without any incident and the Silas Hurricanes win 4-1. Danny waits for everyone to clear from around Perry before skating up to her.

"Still undefeated." Danny says, tapping the top of Perry's helmet. Perry flips her mask up and grins.

"Think we can make it through our senior season undefeated?" She asks as the two skate towards the bench.

"With you in the goal? Of course." Danny replies, grinning.

"Hey, Lawrence, you want to grab something to eat after?" Maddie asks, clapping her on the shoulder as they head towards the locker room.

Danny glances up into the bleachers and catches Carmilla's eye.

"I can't. I've got some stuff to catch up on." She replies, turning back to Maddie.

"Okay, cool." Maddie says, walking into the locker room.

Danny misses Perry's amused stare.

-

Danny grins as she walks across the parking lot to her car. Carmilla is leaned against the driver's side, obviously waiting on her.

"Hey, Slapshot." Carmilla calls out as Danny gets closer.

"Hey there." Danny replies, grinning.

Carmilla pushes off from the side of the car and reaches out, trailing her finger along the strap of Danny's equipment bag.

"You need help with that?" She asks.

Danny shrugs it off and the bag drops with a thump.

"With what?" Danny asks, smirking.

Carmilla laughs and shoves at Danny's chest.

"C'mon, I'll let you drive me around. I'm freezing." She says, moving to to the passenger's side.

Danny laughs and loads her equipment bag into her trunk before sliding into the driver's seat.

"Where to, miss?" Danny asks, starting the engine.

"To the stars." Carmilla replies, grinning at her.

"You've seen Titanic?" Danny asks, turning to look at Carmilla briefly before pulling out of the parking lot.

"If you tell anyone I'll-"

"-rip out my vocal cords. Yeah, yeah, I know."

Carmilla leans over and flips on the radio.

"So, what is in Danny Lawrence's car stereo?" Carmilla asks, pressing the button to switch over to the CD player.

" _Love may be blind, I'll take my chance. That it cares this affair's my real romance. That's why you'll find, somebody's on my mind_ -"

"Billie Holiday?" Carmilla asks, looking over at Danny curiously.

Danny shrugs, ears burning.

"You have good taste, Slapshot. I'm shocked." Carmilla says, leaning back into her seat.

"You're in an awfully good mood." Danny comments, glancing over while they're paused at a red light.

"Yeah, well, it happens sometimes." Carmilla replies.

Danny reaches over and slides her hand into Carmilla's. 

"Don't you need that to shift gears?" Carmilla asks, squeezing Danny's hand briefly.

Danny doesn't respond. She smiles and lifts their intertwined hands onto the gear shift and uses her wrist to shift into 3rd.

"Clever." Carmilla laughs.

Danny grins.

-

"What made you want to come here?" Carmilla asks as Danny turns the car off.

They're stopped at the park, which is completely deserted at night.

"I know you were kidding but you said to take you to the stars, so..." Danny trails off, shrugging.

Carmilla just stares at her.

"What?" Danny asks, suddenly feeling very self conscious as Carmilla continues to stare at her.

Carmilla shakes her head. She tugs on Danny's hand, pulling her closer until they're kissing. It starts off soft and warm, but the kisses gradually get harder and rougher until Carmilla's biting Danny lip and Danny's digging her blunt nails into Carmilla's sides.

"Backseat." Carmilla mumbles against Danny's mouth.

"Wait, seriously?" Danny asks, pulling away.

"Yes?" Carmilla replies, tilting her head. "You mean, you and Laura never..."

"Not in the backseat!" Danny hisses.

"What's wrong with-"

"Carmilla, I'm six foot two."

Carmilla laughs and tugs Danny back in for a quick kiss.

"We'll make it work. Come on. I want you."

She repeatedly shoves at Danny's shoulder until Danny climbs into the backseat, and with the grace of a baby giraffe, topples onto it. Carmilla laughs and slides back after her, landing lightly on top of Danny.

"Hey." Danny whispers, brushing Carmilla's hair back from her face.

"Hi." Carmilla replies, smirking.

She leans in and kisses Danny, her hands sliding under Danny's shirt. Danny's hands travel down Carmilla's back and around to the button on her jeans. Carmilla grins against Danny's mouth as she unbuttons her jeans and slides her hand inside. Carmilla moves away from Danny's mouth and kisses her way down to Danny's neck, moaning against her skin as she feels Danny's hand begin to move between her legs.

"Good?" Danny asks.

Carmilla bites her neck in response.

 

 

 

_9th._

 

"What did you get for number eleven?" Danny asks, stretching her feet out under the table.

"Add Calcium Carbonate." Carmilla replies, biting the end of her pen.

"Oh, duh." Danny mutters to herself, scribbling out the answer.

She shifts her leg and accidentally brushes her leg against Carmilla's.

"Sorry." She says. Carmilla smiles at her.

"I don't mind." Carmilla replies, leaning her leg against Danny's.

Danny grins and tries to focus on the next question on her lab report.

"Did you get four point seven two for number eleven?" Carmilla asks, glancing up from her lab book.

"Yes I did." Danny replies.

"Excellent." Carmilla says, grinning.

She reaches out to grab for her coffee cup and freezes. Danny looks up at her.

"What is it?" She asks.

Carmilla shakes her head and continues to stare toward the door. Danny turns around and her breath catches in her throat.

"Hello, girls." Carmilla's mother says, walking up to their table.

"Mom. What are you doing here?" Carmilla asks, her voice trembling slightly.

"You're late." Her mother replies, simply.

"No, you said I had until 7:30 and it's only 6:50." Carmilla says. Danny stiffens in her chair.

"No, I gave you until 6:30." Her mother says, arching her eyebrow at Carmilla.

"But I thought you said-"

"No arguing, Carmilla dearest, I'm taking you home." Her mother interrupts, waving her keys.

"We need to finish-"

"Now." Her mother interrupts again, eyes flashing dangerously. 

Carmilla presses her leg harder into Danny's and Danny has to fight down the urge to jump up and put herself between Carmilla and her mother.

"Yes, mother." Carmilla says, quickly moving to gather her things.

"I'll meet you in the car. Hurry, please." Her mother says, and then turns on her heel and storms out.

Danny's out of her seat in a flash and Carmilla's arms are around her neck.

"Let me take you home with me. We can sneak out the back and-"

"Danny, that's very heroic of you but it'll be worse if I don't go with her." Carmilla interrupts, pressing her lips to Danny's throat softly.

"Worse? What will be worse? Carmilla-"

"Not now, okay? I'll see you tomorrow." Carmilla says, stepping away from Danny and grabbing her bag.

She brushes her hand against Danny's stomach as she walks past. Danny's protest dies in the back of her throat as Carmilla breezes out of the door. She bolts over to the window and peaks out, ignoring the annoyed stare of the man sitting at the table next to her. She watches as Carmilla's mother turns towards Carmilla in the passenger's seat and opens her mouth. Judging by how hard Carmilla flinches, she must be yelling. Danny tries to swallow the lump in her throat as their car pulls away and out of the lot. 

She slowly makes her way back to her own table and stares down at Carmilla's coffee cup, trying desperately to tame the swelling ocean of panic in her chest.

 

 

_10th._

 

She tries to make it through her AP Chemistry class without crying, but it's proving to be a difficult task.

Every time she glances over at Carmilla's empty stool her chest constricts painfully.

She breaks two test tubes.

Betty keeps looking over at her from her lab station like she's some wild animal that could freak out and attack at any moment.

She spills some of the glucose solution onto her lab manual and Mrs. Vector sighs and tells her to clean up her stuff and go take a walk.

She barely makes it to the library storage room before breaking down.

-

"Danny, is everything okay?" Julie asks as Danny continues to stare blankly at her untouched food.

She nods silently.

"Elsie said you skipped Physics...that's like your favorite class." Julie presses. Maddie not-so-subtly elbows her.

"I wasn't feeling well." Danny mumbles.

"And now?" LaF asks, leaning around Perry.

Danny looks over at them and shrugs.

She tunes them all out for the rest of lunch.

-

She watches the girls' hockey practice from the bench. Coach Ward took one look at her and told her to sit this one out.

She tries to focus on how much faster Ali is skating and how much better Toby's reaction time is. She even tries to focus on Maddie and Julie's ridiculous game of chicken that they attempt near the end of practice. But it's no use.

Her brain is back at that coffee shop running over every possible scenario that could have taken place.

When she gets ready to leave, Perry pulls her aside.

"I'm sure she's fine." Perry says.

Danny freezes.

Before she can ask Perry to clarify, she's already gone.

-

She's stretched out on her bed, her face pressed into her pillows when she hears her phone chime telling her she has a text. She rolls over with a groan and grabs at it. She swipes her phone unlocked and freezes.

"Meet me at the ball field tonight after midnight."

She reads Carmilla's words over and over again in her head. She sits up and checks the clock.

11:15.

She bolts out of bed and grabs her letterman jacket and yanks on her shoes. She creeps down to the basement and over to the window with the broken lock, her method of sneaking out, and climbs out. She quickly starts her car and tears off towards the park.

-

12:23.

She's been pacing the bleachers for almost an hour. Checking her phone so often that she's worn the battery down to under 30%. She's talking herself down from a second anxiety attack when she spots her.

Carmilla's making her way across the outfield towards the bleachers.

Danny doesn't wait for her.

She sprints down the bleachers, two at a time, before hopping the fence and racing out to where Carmilla has stopped. Carmilla opens her mouth to say something but before she can, Danny's lips are on hers. Danny feels Carmilla's hands slide under her jacket and grab at her shirt, gripping tightly. She slides her hands to gently cup Carmilla's face as she pulls back.

"What happened?" Danny breathes out as Carmilla slowly blinks her eyes open.

"Let's go sit down?" She asks, letting go of Danny's shirt and gesturing towards the bleachers.

Danny follows her across the field and then helps her to hop the fence. She follows her to the row in the very center of the bleachers and quietly sits down beside her. Carmilla stares out over the empty field before clearing her throat.

"She doesn't hit me." She says, so quietly that Danny has to lean closer just to hear her. 

"That doesn't mean it's not abuse." Danny replies. Carmilla closes her eyes.

"She has these rules, you know? I'm not allowed to get upset about things, I'm not allowed to invite friends over, I can only feel what she tells me to feel, I have to do what she says all the time." She replies.

"What happens if you don't?" Danny asks, terrified of the answer.

"Lots of yelling. No food. Threats of locking me out of the house again-"

"-again!?"

"-she gets in my face a lot. But she's careful not to lay hands on me. She's a lawyer, she knows how the system works." Carmilla spits out.

"Carmilla, that's still abuse." Danny replies, turning to face Carmilla, who still refuses to look at her.

Carmilla shrugs.

"She's my mother."

"Blood doesn't mean jack shit when she treats you like that." Danny growls.

Carmilla looks over then. Danny watches as her eyes flick over Danny's face, almost as if she's memorizing every feature.

"Stay with me." Danny whispers.

Carmilla shakes her head. She reaches out and traces a finger down Danny's nose and then across her lips.

"I can't." She whispers back.

"If she ever locks you out again or if you ever need a place to stay...there's a window in our basement. It's behind the birdbath in my mom's garden. The lock is broken so it's always unlocked. There's the couch. And you know where my room is." Danny says. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But it's there."

Carmilla nods and turns away again.

She leans her head against Danny's shoulder and Danny stares up at the sky, counting the stars and trying to ignore the tugging in her chest.

 

 

_13th._

 

"I don't understand half of this shit." Carmilla growls.

They're sitting side by side against the couch in Danny's basement, trying to study for their next test.

"Something about molecular formulas and I don't even know." Danny gives up, dropping her notes to the floor.

Carmilla sighs and runs her hand through her hair.

"I knew what she was talking about when we were in class, but now going over everything...I hate this shit." She says, rolling her eyes and closing the textbook.

Danny stretches her legs out with a groan.

"Get up and walk around, Beanpole." Carmilla says, laughing.

"That requires getting up." Danny grumbles.

"Well," Carmilla starts, lowering her voice, "if your parents weren't home I'd have the perfect workout for you."

Danny groans louder as Carmilla winks at her.

She leans over and kisses Danny lightly on the lips once, twice, three times before grabbing at the textbook. She stretches her legs out too and leans back against the couch. Danny sighs and slowly slides down until her head is resting in Carmilla's lap.

"What are you doing?" Carmilla asks.

"Nothing." Danny replies, starting to lift her head back up.

"You don't have to move." Carmilla says, reaching out and tangling her hand in Danny's hair. "I'll read this over again, you rest your brain."

Danny lets her eyes drift closed.

"Hey, Gingersnap?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you help me with that paper on _Crime and Punishment_?" Carmilla asks, scratching at Danny's scalp.

"Of course." Danny replies.

"If you come to pick it up, do you promise not to challenge my mother to a duel or something?" Carmilla jokes. Danny stiffens.

"I'll do my best." Danny replies, tensely.

Carmilla leans down and kisses her.

"It's okay." She mumbles against Danny's lips.

Danny can taste the lie.

 

 

_16th._

 

Danny watches as Carmilla slowly makes her way down the driveway to her car.

'Don't get out of the car.' Carmilla had warned her earlier.

"Hey." Carmilla says, looking extremely stressed.

"Hey ba- uh, hey." Danny catches herself.

She doesn't miss the way Carmilla's lips quirk up into a brief hint of a smile.

"Here it is." Carmilla says, handing Danny her paper through Danny's window.

"I'll bring it back to you tomorrow in class." Danny promises, gently placing the paper in her passenger's seat.

"I know." Carmilla replies, smiling. 

She glances toward the front door before quickly leaning into Danny's car and kissing her firmly.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She says.

"Are you sure you don't want to come-"

"I'll see you tomorrow." Carmilla repeats, squeezing Danny's hand briefly. Danny nods.

"See you tomorrow."

She watches Carmilla in her rearview mirror for as long as she can.

 

 

_17th._

 

"Mmm- Jesus." Danny mumbles as Carmilla kisses her way across her neck.

Carmilla scrapes her teeth against that spot under Danny's ear and Danny grabs Carmilla by the hips and spins so that her back is pressed against the wall of the storage closet. She drops down to her knees and shoves Carmilla's shirt up, kissing at her exposed stomach while fumbling with Carmilla's belt.

"Danny. What are you doing?" Carmilla purrs out, tangling her fingers in Danny's hair and making no move to stop her.

"Can you keep quiet?" Danny asks, unfastening Carmilla's pants and pausing with her fingers gripping the edge of them.

Carmilla locks eyes with her and smirks. Danny grins.

She tugs Carmilla's pants and underwear down, just far enough to give her access, before sliding her tongue between Carmilla's thighs. One of Carmilla's hands leaves Danny's hair and covers her mouth. Danny smirks against Carmilla and quickens her pace.

Minutes later, Carmilla's legs are shaking and she's biting down on her own hand to keep from moaning out loud. Danny feels Carmilla's release hit and she slows down before pulling away gently. She looks up to find Carmilla, hair completely tousled, leaned back against the wall with her hand still clamped over her mouth.

"You okay?" Danny whispers out. Carmilla nods, fixing her clothes as Danny leans back and sits on the floor.

Carmilla slides down until she's sitting in Danny's lap. She leans in and kisses her, slowly this time.

"Are you parents home?" She whispers.

"They're both teachers, you know that. They won't be home until after 4:30." Danny replies, sliding her arms across Carmilla's lower back.

"Do you want to skip everything else and just go home?" Carmilla asks.

"I would love to." Danny replies, smiling.

"You're sure?" Carmilla asks again.

"Yes." Danny replies, squeezing Carmilla lightly.

Carmilla stands up and reaches for Danny's hand to pull her up too.

"Let's get out of here, Xena." 

Danny grins.

 

 

_18th._

 

"Broadchurch, on your six!" Danny calls out.

Maddie spins around and blocks the Westpoint defensemen's attempt to board her. Danny grins and glides toward the goal as Jess clears the way for Julie and the puck. They're up 3-0 in the final minutes of their final game before Christmas break. Julie passes the puck quickly to Danny, who turns and fires off a shot that sails right past the goalie's stick. The goal siren sounds and Danny cheers as Julie and Maddie skate over to sandwich her in a hug.

"Get off, get off!" Danny laughs, shoving at them both as they skate over to the bench.

Emily swipes at her with her stick as she takes the ice with Becca and Gina. Danny, Maddie and Julie watch the last minute of the game go by from the bench. When the buzzer sounds, they all swarm Perry and congratulate her on another shutout.

"Do you have any plans after this?" Perry asks, as they skate to the bench.

"Kind of." Danny replies with a shrug.

"You going to tell me what they are?" Perry presses.

Danny pretends to consider it for a second.

"Nah." She teases, elbowing Perry lightly.

"Well, do they involve Carmilla or Laura? Or both? Please don't say both, my brain might actually explode." Perry asks. Danny freezes.

"Neither." She lies.

Perry eyes her for a moment.

"If you say so." Perry says, glancing past Danny's ear.

She turns to find Carmilla and Laura both beaming at her from the bleachers.

"You know, I don't think I've ever seen her smile like that." Perry says, lightly tapping Danny on the back with her goalie stick before walking away.

"Shit." Danny mutters under her breath.

-

"You probably won't see much of me until Christmas." Carmilla says, leaning her head against Danny's window.

"Why's that?" Danny asks, turning in the driver's seat of her car to face Carmilla.

"My mom." Carmilla replies. Danny grimaces. "But she's going out of town on Christmas Eve and won't be back until the 3rd."

"That's good." Danny says. Carmilla nods. 

"You can come over, if you want. Once she's gone." Carmilla says, looking everywhere but at Danny's face.

"You sure?" Danny asks.

"Yeah. It'd be nice." Carmilla replies. She tenses up. "You know, because then we'd be able to fuck without worrying about getting caught."

Danny laughs.

"That's always a plus."

"You're entirely too good with that mouth of yours." Carmilla teases.

"I'm aware." Danny replies, grinning. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Oh great. Now you're going to get an ego." She jokes. Danny laughs.

"Oh I already have one." Danny replies. "And hey, like you're one to talk Miss My-Hands-Should-Have-Monuments-Built-Honoring-Them."

"I didn't hear you arguing." Carmilla says. "In fact, I'm pretty sure the only noise you were capable of making was moaning my name."

Danny blushes.

"Yeah, well..." She trails off.

"Aha!" Carmilla exclaims, pointing at her and grinning.

"Shut up." Danny grumbles.

But she's smiling.

 

 

_24th._

 

Danny leaps over the porch steps and rings the doorbell to Carmilla's house. She stands there, shifting her weight from foot to foot and nervously twirling the thin package around in her hands. Finally, Carmilla opens the door.

"Hey." She says, smiling.

"Hey." Danny replies, beaming back at her.

"Come in." Carmilla says, stepping aside so Danny can walk past her and into the house.

Danny glances around, taking in the immaculate living room that doesn't actually look lived in. The spotless white carpet, white couch and glass coffee table make the room look like something out of a fancy magazine. She feels Carmilla's hand slide into hers.

"My room is this way." She says, tugging Danny toward the hallway at the back of the house.

Surprisingly, instead of turning into the room at the end, she reaches up and tugs on a rope dangling from the ceiling. A ladder folds out.

"Wait, your room is in the attic?" Danny asks. Carmilla grins at her.

"Yes."

She leads the way up into the attic room. It's pretty small. A low ceiling that's only about two feet above Danny's head, a bed in the center of the room, a wardrobe, an old bookshelf crammed with books on the left and an old record player on the right.

"It's cozy." Danny says. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, well. I like it." She replies.

"I do too." Danny says, smiling. "Oh! Hey, I brought you something."

She hold out the thin package wrapped in Christmas paper.

"What's this?" Carmilla asks, taking it from her.

"Well, open it and find out." Danny replies, rolling her eyes.

Carmilla eyes her for a moment before carefully unwrapping the package. She turns the record over in her hands.

" _The Wizard of Oz_ soundtrack on vinyl how did you know-" Carmilla asks, staring at the record in awe.

"I kind of assumed. You told me _Somewhere Over the Rainbow_ was your favorite song, remember?" Danny replies, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.

"Danny, this is-" Carmilla stops again, still staring at the record like it's the most precious thing she's ever held.

"It's no big." Danny says, feeling her ears turning red.

"It's a big deal to me." Carmilla says, looking up. "I didn't- I didn't get you-"

"Oh! No. No, don't worry about that. I found it while I was looking for something for my dad and I thought you might like it." Danny lies.

In all actuality, she'd spent a whole month tracking the thing down and had driven to an antique shop two counties over just to buy it.

"Seriously, thank you." Carmilla says, staring up at Danny in complete amazement.

"Well, you're welcome." Danny replies, grinning at her.

"Hey, come here." Carmilla whispers, reverently placing the record on top of her record player and reaching for Danny.

Danny steps over to her and lets Carmilla pull her down into a deep kiss.

That three hour drive was definitely worth it.

 

 

_26th._

 

"Fuck." Danny hisses out.

Carmilla grins and scrapes her teeth against Danny's neck. She curls her fingers again and Danny's seeing stars.

"What was that?" Carmilla teases and Danny mutters out a string of curse words.

She digs her nails into Carmilla back until her body relaxes. Carmilla gently slides her fingers away and trails them up Danny's leg to her side.

"Jesus." Danny whispers out. Carmilla laughs.

She settles her head on Danny's chest as Danny lightly scratches at her shoulders.

"Monuments." Carmilla teases.

"Shut up." Danny laughs, lightly shoving at Carmilla's shoulders.

Carmilla kisses her chest.

"Your bed's really comfy." Danny says, wiggling around a bit. 

"You should stay." Carmilla whispers against Danny's skin. "Here. With me. It's getting late."

"Yeah, I'm not really feeling that drive home." Danny agrees.

"That also requires putting clothes on." Carmilla teases.

"Yeah, I'm staying here." Danny says.

Carmilla laughs. Danny shifts so she can sit up and Carmilla rolls to the other side of the bed. Danny reaches down onto the floor and grabs her phone.

"Gotta call my mom." She explains. Carmilla nods.

Danny dials the number and sits there, with Carmilla's sheets wrapped around her, waiting for her mom to pick up. Carmilla reaches out and gently traces her finger along the freckles on Danny's back. Danny shivers just as her mom picks up.

"Yeah, hey, mom. Is it okay if I stay at Carmilla's tonight? No, she's out of town. Yeah? Okay. Yeah sure, I'll ask her. Thanks, ma."

She hangs up and drops her phone back to the floor before turning back over to face Carmilla.

"Mom wants to know if you want to have dinner with us tomorrow?" Danny asks.

"Hell yes." Carmilla replies. Danny grins.

"Now, where were we?" She asks, leaning back in.

Carmilla kisses her hard.

 

 

_27th._

 

"I'll get it!" Danny calls out, racing to open the front door.

"Hey." Carmilla says as Danny lets her into the house.

"Hey." Danny replies, grinning.

"You- ah, you left this at my house." Carmilla mutters, clearing her throat and handing Danny her letterman jacket.

Danny eyes the jacket for a few seconds before looking back up at Carmilla.

"You know, you can borrow it if you want? I trust you not to lose it."

Carmilla smiles briefly, lowering her arm and fingering the stitching on the jacket.

"Yeah, okay."

"I'll just get it the next time I'm at your house." Danny says, shrugging. Carmilla nods, setting the jacket on a nearby chair with her keys.

"Hola! Carmilla!" Danny's mother calls, leaning around the doorway to the kitchen.

"Hola, Mrs. Lawrence." Carmilla replies.

"Dinner is almost ready!" She says before disappearing.

"Come on, you can help me set the table." Danny says, jerking her head toward the kitchen.

-

"How long is your mother out of town for, querida?" Beatrice asks.

"Until the 3rd." Carmilla replies, reaching for her drink.

"You are more than welcome to stay with us." Derek says, silently wrestling Danny for the last roll.

"Thank you." Carmilla replies, smiling down at her lap.

Danny pulls her hand away, triumphantly, and grins. She feels Carmilla's hand slide onto her knee and squeeze lightly.

"Do you girls have plans for New Year's?" Beatrice asks, rolling her eyes at Derek's pout.

"Yeah, Kirsch is throwing a party and everybody's going." Danny replies, around a mouthful of bread. She makes a sheepish face a swallow as her mother glares at her.

"Well, you girls be careful. Your mother and I are going to that party downtown and we're probably going to stay at your Uncle Dave's." Derek says.

"We will, dad." Danny promises.

She doesn't miss Carmilla's slight smirk.

 

 

_ 31st. _

 

"I don't understand why everybody is freaking out. It's not a big deal." Carmilla grumbles, leaning against the counter in Kirsch's kitchen.

"Not a big deal? Carmilla it's New Year's!" Laura exclaims, reaching for another sausage ball.

"So?" Carmilla scoffs, rolling her eyes at Danny. Danny shakes her head.

"So, it's like...totally a big deal." Laura argues, lamely.

"Plus, they say that the person you kiss at midnight is the person you're meant to be with for the rest of the year." Maddie jumps in, waggling her eyebrows. Julie shoves her.

"That too..." Laura trails off, sheepishly.

"That's really childish." Carmilla deadpans.

"For you, maybe." Maddie teases. Julie shoves her again.

"Hey, has anybody seen Perry?" Danny suddenly asks.

"Probably making out with LaFontaine somewhere." Maddie replies. Carmilla and Julie both snort.

"Be nice, they're cute together!" Laura reasons, grabbing yet another sausage ball.

"Nobody is saying they aren't." Maddie promises.

"ONE MORE MINUTE, GUYS!" Kirsch bellows from the living room.

Maddie grabs Julie's arm and tugs her toward the living room.

"C'mon, West, I want to watch the ball drop."

"You are such a CHILD." Julie huffs, letting herself be dragged away.

"You coming, Danny?" Laura asks as she hooks her arm around Carmilla's and starts dragging her after the other two.

"You guys go ahead, I like to go outside." Danny replies, gesturing to the back porch. Laura nods.

"Okay." 

She tugs Carmilla into the living room. Danny makes her way outside and leans against the railing. She looks up at the stars and sighs.

30!

The truth is, she'd rather be in the living room with everyone else but the temptation to kiss Carmilla at midnight was too overwhelming. 

20!

She takes a deep breath. It was just a stupid superstition anyway. It didn't mean anything. Besides, they weren't a couple so what did it matter?

10!

She hears the porch door slide open and footsteps coming towards her.

9!

Whoever it is stops just behind her.

8!

She feels a hand on her arm, gently tugging.

7!

She turns around.

6!

There's Carmilla. Staring at her with that same look she had on her face when Danny gave her that record.

5!

She steps closer to Danny and slides her hands up Danny's arms.

4!

"What-" Danny starts to ask.

3!

Carmilla shakes her head.

2!

She leans up and Danny can feel Carmilla's breath drifting across her lips.

1!

Everything seems to slow down around her as she feels Carmilla's lips grazing hers.

 

 


	6. January

_1st._

Happy New Year!

Carmilla's lips are on hers and the kiss is hard and desperate. 

She can hear the faint sound of everyone cheering through the thick glass door but the only thing she's focused on is the sound of her own heartbeat drumming through her skull. Carmilla pulls away slowly, her eyes flickering open.

"I'm sorry." She whispers. "I just had to."

"It's okay." Danny croaks out, her voice raw.

"I'll meet you back inside." Carmilla says.

And then she's gone.

Danny leans back against the railing and tries to remember how to breathe.

-

They stumble into an empty house.

Carmilla's mouth is warm and her hands are sliding under Danny's hoodie to scratch at the skin of her sides. Danny's arms slide around Carmilla and she's lifting her, carrying her up the stairs and into her room. She sets her down gently onto the bed and Carmilla reaches for the edge of her hoodie, tugging it up and off.

They're a flurry of limbs and fabric. Frenzied kisses and desperate hands.

Danny winds up on her back, Carmilla's mouth between her thighs. Carmilla's hands grip her hips and hold her in place.

"Fuck." She whispers out.

Carmilla's fingers dig into her skin.

When she comes, Carmilla's name spills from her lips like a prayer.

Carmilla moves on top of her and Danny's fingers slide between Carmilla's thighs and inside of her. She feels her breathing harshly against her neck as she finds a quick rhythm. Carmilla's hands grip the sheets beside of Danny's head and she scrapes her teeth against the skin of Danny's neck.

She breathes out Danny's name against her ear as she falls apart and Danny's pretty sure it's the most amazing sound she's ever heard.

 

 

_2nd._

 

Danny's eyes flicker open to her sunlit room. She starts to stretch, but something warm and heavy pressed against her stops her movement. Carmilla is curled up against her side, her legs draped over Danny's and her arm stretched across Danny's stomach. Her face is relaxed. Peaceful. For once she looks like she doesn't have a care in the world. 

Danny reaches out and lightly traces Carmilla's bare shoulder. 

She's suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of panic.

She used to wake up before Laura and lie there for awhile, just watching her sleep.

But she was in love with Laura.

She's not in love with Carmilla.

Is she?

As quickly as she can, and without waking Carmilla, Danny slides out of the bed and throws on her gym shorts and a hoodie and slips out of the room. She leans against her bedroom door for a few moments before bolting into the bathroom. She closes the door behind her and bends over the sink.

No.

She's being stupid.

She's not in love with Carmilla.

Appreciating how someone looks while they're sleeping doesn't mean you're in love with them.

In fact, it sounds kind of creepy.

She shakes her head and groans.

She flips on the faucet of the sink and splashes cold water on her face, scrubbing at her skin with her hands. She looks at herself in the mirror, wincing when she sees the scratch marks on the back of her neck. She flips the hood of her hoodie up and glares at her reflection.

'Stop being ridiculous, Lawrence. Get your shit together.' She thinks.

-

"Morning, hija."

Danny freezes in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Uh. Morning, ma." She replies, walking in the room.

Her mother continues mixing pancake mix in a bowl.

"You're back early, it's like 7 in the morning." Danny says, opening the refrigerator and grabbing a bottle of water.

"Your father wanted to beat the traffic. He's in the shower." Beatrice replies.

"Ah." Danny mumbles, unscrewing the cap to her water bottle and trying to quell the panic in her chest.

"How's Carmilla?" Her mother asks, placing a pan on the stove.

"She's- uh, she's fine." Danny replies, taking a sip of her water.

"She's asleep in your bed, isn't she?" Her mother asks.

Danny chokes on her mouthful of water and spits it out everywhere. She coughs loudly, doubling over for a few moments before her breathing returns to normal. She straightens up.

"I'll take that as a yes." Beatrice says, smiling slyly at her.

"What- how- what?" She sputters out.

"Hija, really? You think I don't know my own daughter? It was written all over your face as soon as I mentioned her name. Obvio!" Beatrice replies.

Danny stares at her in disbelief before her mother rolls her eyes and gestures at her face.

"That, and you have a hickey under your ear."

Danny's entire face reddens as she reaches up and covers the side of her head with her hand. How did she miss THAT?

"I- we're- we're not-"

Her mother just stares at her.

"Well, I mean- we ARE, you know, but we're not like- we're not a thing." Danny stammers out.

"Just, be careful okay? With yourself and with her." Beatrice says, turning back to her pancake mix. "And no sex while your father and I are home, comprende?"

Danny coughs again.

"I- yeah, no, of course. We never- we wouldn't-"

"Cálmese!" Beatrice interrupts, nonchalantly. As if she isn't discussing her daughter's sex life. 

"Let me ask you one thing?" She says, glancing back at Danny.

"Yeah?"

"Her mother...she's not a nice person, is she?" Beatrice asks.

"She's really not." Danny replies. "But, wait, how did you-"

"Daniella, you forget that I'm a teacher. Carmilla... the way she carries herself, the way she speaks, she reminds me of a few of my students. Students who come from homes where- well, let's just say Social Services had to get involved." Beatrice explains.

Danny leans against the counter beside her mother.

"I don't know what to do." Danny admits.

"You can't exactly 'do' anything, querida. You have to let her come to you. She always has a safe place here." Beatrice replies.

Danny watches her mother cook pancake after pancake in silence.

 

 

_4th._

 

"Fucking turkey sandwiches." Maddie grumbles, sliding into the seat across from Danny.

"For god's sake, Maddie, will you just pick something else?" Julie says.

"I can't, that's the problem." Maddie replies.

Julie rolls her eyes as Perry and Danny giggle.

"It's the first day back and I'm already swamped with homework." Laura complains, dropping into the seat on Julie's left.

"Yeah, tell me about it. I have a freakin' paper due at the end of the week that was assigned TODAY." LaFontaine complains.

"Why do teachers like to torture us?" Julie asks, peeling her orange.

"Because they're teachers. It's like, a rule." Maddie replies.

"Hey, not all teachers are jerks." Danny says.

"Lawrence, your parents are saints. Like, actual saints. They don't count." Maddie says, pointing at her.

"Oh, hey, did you get to see your abuela?" Perry asks, turning to look at Danny. Danny's face lights up.

"Yeah! Yeah, I did." She replies.

"Did she give you another one of those awesome sweaters she knits?" Julie asks.

"She did. Stripes this time." Danny replies, grinning.

Her abuela always knitted her a sweater with some elaborately cool pattern as a Christmas present. She always claimed that Danny was too tall for store bought sweaters and these would keep her much warmer.

"Awesome." Maddie says, grinning back at her.

Danny's phone buzzes in her pocket and she slides it out and unlocks it.

'Meet me in the Yearbook room for 6th.' Carmilla's texts reads.

She grins.

-

"You rang?" Danny asks, leaning against the doorframe.

"Come here and look at this." Carmilla says, gesturing Danny over.

Danny pushes off from the doorframe and saunters over. She leans over Carmilla's shoulder to view a layout of various pictures of the football team practicing.

"These are good. Did you take these?" Danny asks.

"Yeah." Carmilla replies. "Does this layout look okay? Or should I flip them around?"

"No, I think it looks good like this." Danny says.

"Good." Carmilla mutters. "I have to get these Fall Sports layouts finished by the end of the day so I figured you could keep me company."

Danny grins and pulls up a chair.

She doesn't miss the easy smile on Carmilla's face, nor the blush creeping into her cheeks.

 

 

_7th._

 

"Gina, for the love of all that is holy, watch where you're going!" Danny calls out as Gina accidentally trips Becca for the second time.

"Sorry!" Gina calls back, sheepishly.

Danny groans as she skates over to Perry.

"Well, she's not terrible." Perry reasons.

"No, no she's really not. She just doesn't trust herself yet." Danny replies.

"See, this is why you're the captain." Perry says, grinning. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Stop, you're going to make me cry." Danny deadpans. Perry pokes her in the stomach with her glove.

"Hey, listen, you want to grab some dinner after this with me and LaF?" Perry asks.

"I can't. I have to meet Carmilla to work on that stupid lab report." Danny replies, trying to sound as annoyed as possible when really she was excited about spending time with Carmilla.

Perry makes a non-committal noise.

"What?" Danny asks.

"Nothing." Perry says, obviously lying.

"Seriously, Lola, what?" Danny asks. Perry whacks her with her goalie stick.

"Not my first name, I hate my first name." Perry grumbles. "And it's just...you act like you don't like her but..." She trails off. Danny sighs.

"Okay, I don't hate her. She's actually pretty great." Danny admits.

"Is that all?" Perry asks.

"Yes." Danny lies.

Perry groans.

"Seriously, I-"

"No. Check your protege." Perry interrupts, gesturing behind her.

Danny spins around to find Gina on top of Toby. In the net.

Danny groans and covers her face with her hands.

-

"Okay, wait, double check this equation for me?" Danny asks, sliding her lab manual over to Carmilla.

Carmilla drains the last of her coffee before leaning over the book and licking her lips. Danny blinks rapidly and almost drops her pen.

"Yeah, you're right." Carmilla says, sliding her book back towards her.

"Thanks." Danny mumbles out.

Carmilla checks her phone and sighs.

"Need to leave?" Danny asks.

"Yeah, it's almost time for my mom to get home." Carmilla replies quietly. Danny nods.

"Come on, let me drive you home." Danny offers.

"You have no idea how much I would love that, but honestly Beanpole, the two of us alone in your car right now would be a bad idea." Carmilla replies, winking as she packs her bag.

Danny grins.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes."

"Why's that?" Danny asks.

Carmilla leans in and whispers into Danny's ear:

"Because I'd make you pull over and go down on me."

Danny chokes on absolutely nothing.

Carmilla laughs and kisses the side of her head and then she glides out of the coffee shop.

Danny leans back in her chair and swears in every language she knows how to speak.

 

 

_10th._

 

Danny's pacing the bleachers and checking her phone for the-

Well, she's lost count at this point.

She sighs, scrubbing at her face with her hand. Carmilla had texted her at just after 1am asking her to meet her at the ballpark. She's in the middle of dialing Maddie for back up to go storm Carmilla's house when she spots her.

Carmilla's sprinting across the outfield and then hopping the fence. Danny waits impatiently as Carmilla climbs the stairs up to their usual row.

"Are you-"

Before she can even finish her sentence Carmilla's kissing her. Her hands slide under Danny's jacket to grab at her back and pull her in closer. She tears her mouth away abruptly.

"I'm sorry, I just needed-"

Danny kisses her again.

"What happened?" She asks.

Carmilla gestures for her to sit down, so she does. Surprisingly, Carmilla sits in her lap and slides her arms around Danny's neck. Danny immediately, wraps her arms around Carmilla's waist.

"We got into it, big time."

"Did she-"

"No. No, she didn't hit me."

"What was it about?" Danny asks, reaching up to brush some of Carmilla's hair out of her eyes.

"College, mostly. About how she's refusing to pay for me to go. She says I'm just going to waste her hard earned money if I can even get in." Carmilla scoffs. Danny shakes her head.

"You'll get in. You're really smart." Danny says.

"I don't feel like it sometimes." Carmilla admits.

"You are." Danny promises.

"I just don't know what I'm going to do, Danny. I have to get out of here, I have to-" She's starting to panic. Danny tightens her grip on her.

"It's okay. It's okay, you have time. There are scholarships and financial aid and all kinds of tricks. It'll all be okay. I can help you, if you want." Danny promises.

"I would really appreciate that, honestly." Carmilla admits.

"Of course." Danny says.

Carmilla drops her head to Danny's shoulder.

"I'm sorry I woke you. I just needed to get out of there."

"Did you sneak out or did she kick you out?" Danny asks, stiffening.

Carmilla kisses her ear.

"I snuck out, it's okay."

"Do you want to stay with me tonight?" Danny asks.

Carmilla thinks about it for a moment.

"I have to sneak back in my house by 7:30." Carmilla replies.

"I'll set an alarm." Danny says.

She feels Carmilla sigh with relief against her neck.

The fluttering in her chest is so strong, she wonders how Carmilla doesn't feel it through her jacket.

 

 

_12th._

 

"Where's Maddie?" Laura asks, sitting down beside Julie.

"Sick." Danny and Perry reply in unison.

"If it was because of those turkey sandwiches we are never going to hear the end of it." Danny jokes.

"Oh god please do not even put that idea out into the universe." Julie says. Laura snorts.

"Hey, Danny, you have Roberts for Physics right?" LaFontaine asks, leaning around Perry.

"Yeah, why?"

"Do you guys have to do that rocket project for your final?" They ask.

"Yeah, I'm stoked." Danny replies, grinning.

"I am so lost." LaF says. "Like, I don't even know where to start with it."

"Google." Danny jokes. LaF scowls.

"Funny. You want to major in astronautical engineering and you can't give me like, one piece of advice?" They beg.

"Technically, I just did." Danny grins.

"Danny." Perry admonishes, slapping her on the arm.

"I'm kidding, god, Per." Danny replies. "Seriously, bud, I'll help you with it when it gets closer to finals time."

"Thank you." LaFontaine sighs out, relieved.

Danny shakes her head.

-

"I need to ask you a favor." Carmilla mumbles as Danny continues to kiss her neck.

"Well, considering you just gave me an orgasm..." She trails off. Carmilla swats at her.

"Seriously." Carmilla says.

Danny leans back.

"What is it?"

"Can you look over my paper on _Brave New World_?" Carmilla asks.

"Seriously? You know you don't really have to ask." Danny says, grinning at her.

"I like to ask though, I don't want to assume." Carmilla replies.

"Okay." Danny says.

"Thank you." Carmilla says.

Danny kisses her again.

 

 

_13th._

 

She waits in her car as Carmilla quickly darts out of her house and sprints over to Danny's window.

"What-"

"Here." Carmilla shoves the paper into Danny's hand.

"Carm-"

"I can't talk, okay?" Carmilla interrupts.

"Okay. Be careful?" Danny replies.

Carmilla pauses as she turns away. She turns back to Danny and leans into the car, kissing her quick and hard before tearing off back toward the house.

Danny sighs as the door slams shut. She looks down at the paper in her lap, flipping through it. When she gets to last page she freezes. There's a post-it note stuck to it.

"You're the best." it says, with a heart drawn underneath the words.

Danny sticks it to her steering wheel the entire drive home. It helps quell the rising panic in her chest.

But only just a little.

 

 

_15th._

 

Danny groans as the Weldon center fires a shot past Perry, putting them up 2-1 early in the third.

"GOD D-" Maddie freezes as Coach Ward turns to her. "-BLESS AMERICA!" 

Coach Ward rolls her eyes.

"Broadchurch, Lawrence, West. You're in." She calls out as a downtrodden Emily, Becca and Gina step up into the bench.

Danny skates out onto the ice and takes her position. Julie wins the faceoff and passes it back over to Elsie. Elsie dodges one of the Weldon wingers and passes the puck up the ice to Maddie. Maddie barely avoids getting slammed into and passes the puck back to Ali, who immediately loses it to the Weldon center. Danny charges after her and expertly steals the puck back.

She glances around and finds Julie open so she fires the puck over to her. Julie dodges another Weldon girl and bides her time near the goal. Maddie swoops in and Julie quickly passes it over to her. Danny skates up just as Maddie scores.

"Yes!" Danny cheers.

The rest of the third passes without either team scoring, sending them into the dreaded overtime.

"What's the plan, boss?" Elsie asks.

"First of all, you're going to stop calling me that. Second of all, don't let them score." Danny replies.

"I like it." Emily says.

Halfway through overtime, Danny and the first line are on the bench. Gina almost loses the puck, but Emily swoops in and snags it back. She sees what's about to happen before anyone else does and she's on her feet. Emily pretends to lose control of the puck, making the Weldon goalie relax for a split second.

That's when Emily fires.

The puck sails past the goalie's glove and into the net.

Danny's over the wall and onto the ice as goal siren and buzzer sound simultaneously. 

She slams into Emily just as Becca grabs her from her other side.

"Way to go, Freshie!" Becca yells.

Emily grins.

"Aw, shucks." Emily laughs.

They skate over to Perry, who's slumped against the goalposts.

"Still undefeated!" Danny calls out.

Perry groans.

"Yeah, no thanks to me."

"Aw, Per, don't beat yourself up." Danny says, slinging an arm around her.

"You got plans again?" Perry asks as they skate over to the bench.

"Yes." Danny replies, catching Carmilla's eye.

"Good luck with that." Perry says.

Danny rolls her eyes.

-

"Hey, Slapshot." Carmilla calls out.

Danny closes her trunk.

"Hey, yourself." She replies, grinning.

"Good game." Carmilla says.

"We almost lost." Danny says, rolling her eyes.

"It was exciting though." Carmilla teases.

"For you, maybe." Danny says.

Carmilla laughs.

"You still up for studying this weekend, or are you too emotionally scarred from your near-loss?" Carmilla asks.

"We're still on." Danny replies, laughing.

"Good." Carmilla says.

"Do you want to-"

"I can't." Carmilla interrupts.

"Okay." Danny replies.

"I'll see you later, Danny." Carmilla calls out, and then she's gone.

Danny sighs.

 

 

_17th._

 

Carmilla reaches her hand out from her position on the couch in Danny's basement and gently combs it through Danny's hair. Danny tries to focus on the notes in front of her, but all she can focus on is Carmilla's touch.

The fluttering in her chest gets to be too much.

She shifts her head out of Carmilla's grasp and reaches for her textbook.

"I'm so tired." Carmilla groans. Danny smiles.

"Take a nap." She suggests.

Carmilla shakes her head.

"Bad idea, Beanpole." Carmilla replies.

"Why's that?" Danny asks.

"This couch is too comfortable. I won't wake up." Carmilla says. Danny laughs.

"I'll wake you up, don't worry. We have time." Danny promises.

"Okay fine." Carmilla relents, closing her book.

She drops it to the floor and rolls over onto her side, curling up.

"Here." Danny says, stripping off her hoodie.

She drapes it over Carmilla like a blanket. Carmilla blushes.

"Thanks." She mumbles.

"No problem." Danny mutters back, her own ears turning bright red.

She settles back against the couch and tries to focus on her notes again.

But the fluttering in her chest just won't go away.

 

 

_20th._

 

"Here, hand me the Iodine." Danny says, gesturing to the bottle near Carmilla's elbow.

Carmilla passes it to her and focuses on the rack of test tubes in front of her.

"I don't get it, none of these are changing color. Shouldn't at least one of them react?" She asks. Danny sighs.

"Maybe we didn't put enough of this in it." Danny muses, adding another two drops to the first solution.

No change.

"I wonder if we have to stir it more-"

"Danny." Mrs. Vector interrupts from the door. She looks up from the note in her hand and stares at Danny for a few seconds. "You uh- they need you in the office. Take your stuff with you."

Danny glances over at Carmilla, confused.

"Okay?" She replies, gathering her things and making her way over to the door.

She glances back at Carmilla one last time, who's watching her go looking just as confused as she feels.

-

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

She's vaguely aware of the door to her room opening and closing but she ignores it, focusing on the tennis ball she's throwing against the wall and catching. The intruder pauses at the end of her bed before slowly moving to sit beside of her, leaning their back against the bed.

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

"Danny." Carmilla whispers.

She hurls the ball one last time, but instead of catching it she lets it bounce away and roll underneath her dresser.

"Danny." Carmilla whispers again, more urgently.

Danny shakes her head. She can feel the hot tears pricking at her eyes but she refuses to let them fall.

"Danny." Carmilla says.

She shifts from her place beside of her and slowly climbs into Danny's lap. Danny shakes her head again as the tears start to drip down her cheeks.

"Danny, Danny, Danny." Carmilla repeats, over and over again, her hands sliding onto Danny's cheeks.

She pulls Danny's face forward, kissing her on her forehead.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She repeats, pressing kisses all over Danny's face.

Something inside Danny snaps, like high tide breaking on the shore, and she's sobbing uncontrollably into Carmilla's shoulder. She grips at the back of Carmilla's jacket- her own letterman jacket- as her body shudders.

"I've got you." Carmilla whispers into her ear.

Her abuela was gone.

And she hadn't even been able to say goodbye.

-

She wakes up in her bed, with her blanket draped over her and Carmilla curled against her back and gripping her waist. She takes a deep breath, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness of her room. She shifts, reaching onto the floor for her phone. She hears Carmilla mumble something unintelligible against her back, tightening her grip on her waist. She has an ungodly number of text messages and missed calls. She ignores them all and checks the time.

10:32.

She rolls over. Carmilla grumbles.

"Carm." She whispers.

Carmilla inhales deeply as her eyes flick open.

"Yeah, babe?"

Danny feels a flutter in her chest among the churning sea of sadness.

"It's 10:32, your mom-"

"Don't worry about it." Carmilla mumbles.

Danny starts to protest but changes her mind. She drops her phone back to the floor and settles back into bed, rolling so that her back is to Carmilla again.

"No, come here." Carmilla mutters, tugging at Danny's shoulder.

She rolls back over and slides down the bed until she can rest her head against Carmilla's chest. Carmilla's heart beats strong and steady against her ear. She feels Carmilla's hand tangle in her hair, lightly scratching at her scalp.

Carmilla starts humming something, the sound reverberating down through her chest and against Danny's head. After a few bars, she recognizes it just as Carmilla starts to softly sing.

"Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high..."

She drifts back off to sleep.

-

She wakes up, hours later, with the sun streaming in the window above her bed.

She rolls over.

She's alone and the bed is cold, but when she reaches out her hand to touch the sheets she feels something foreign on her wrist.

It's Carmilla's bracelet.

She smiles.

 

 

_21st._

 

She hears the door to her room close softly.

Her parents left hours ago, taking the first flight they could to Barcelona. She was stuck here all week by herself because she couldn't miss that much class. You would think the school system would make an exception for the death of a grandparent, wouldn't you?

She clenches her fist against the pillow.

The bed dips beside of her and she feels the blanket shift. Warm hands press against her back, one reaches up and lightly brushes her hair away from the back of her neck. Carmilla presses a kiss to the skin there before settling against Danny's back. She strokes her hand gently up and down Danny's side for what feels like hours before Danny finally speaks.

"I never knew my birth parents."

Carmilla's hand stalls for just a second before she continues her movements.

"I never really wanted to, honestly. My parents don't know why they gave me up, just that they did." Danny whispers.

"Did you ever want to try and find them?" Carmilla asks. She feels Danny tense.

"No. I have a family. They didn't want me. For whatever reason, they didn't want me." Danny replies.

Carmilla's hand slides from Danny's side to her stomach and she grips her tight.

"My dad left before I was born." Carmilla whispers.

Danny rolls over and Carmilla's hand slides from her stomach to her chest.

"My mother told him she was pregnant and he just...walked out." Carmilla says, focusing on the loose thread at Danny's collar.

Danny gently combs her fingers through Carmilla's hair.

"I think that's why she hates me so much." Carmilla whispers, just barely audible. "Neither of them wanted me but she got stuck."

Danny leans in and presses her lips to Carmilla's forehead.

"What was she like, Danny?" Carmilla asks. Danny lips move against her forehead.

"You know my mom?" Danny replies.

"Yeah?"

"Almost exactly like her. Short. Smart. Funny. And loving. God, she was so..." Danny trails off and takes a deep breath. "She always made me feel like I belonged. Like I was my mother's own flesh and blood- her own flesh and blood. She never treated me differently. Well, actually, she did always ask me to get things for her off the top shelves."

Carmilla laughs against Danny's neck.

"I think she would have liked you." Danny whispers.

Carmilla's hands tighten against the fabric of her shirt and then she's kissing her. Hard and desperate like their New Year's kiss.

The swelling sea of sadness in Danny's heart begins to calm.

-

"I have to get home." Carmilla mumbles, her head resting against Danny's sheet covered chest.

"Your mom home tonight?" Danny asks, trailing her fingers across Carmilla's bare shoulders.

"Unfortunately." Carmilla breathes out.

She sits up and slides out of bed, dressing quietly. She pauses, reaching for her shirt. Instead she grabs Danny's and pulls it over her head. Danny blinks a few times, certain she's hallucinating, but no. When Carmilla straightens up from pulling her shoes on and grabbing her phone she's wearing Danny's red and white baseball shirt. She grabs her leather jacket off Danny's desk chair and then walks back over to the bed.

"I'll text you tonight." Carmilla says, leaning down and kissing Danny quickly.

"Okay." Danny says.

Carmilla smiles at her one last time before gliding out the door.

Danny leans back against her pillows.

"Amor, cariño, eso es amor." Her abuela's voice sounds in her head.

She sighs.

 

 

_22nd._

 

She wakes up to cold hands sliding underneath her shirt. Her eyes snap open and she can barely make out the outline of Carmilla's face in the dark.

"What time is it?" She mumbles.

"Just after three." Carmilla replies, pressing herself against Danny's body.

"What are you doing here?" Danny asks, slipping her arms around Carmilla and pulling the blanket back around them both.

"I snuck out." Carmilla says, resting her face against Danny's shoulder.

"Everything okay?" Danny asks.

"Yes. I just..." She mumbles the rest into Danny's shirt so Danny can't hear her.

"You what?"

"I just didn't want to leave you alone." She admits.

Danny blinks away tears and holds her closer.

 

 

_25th._

 

"Hey boss."

"Stop calling me that."

"Danny, seriously, you sure you don't want to skip today?" Elsie asks, leaning against her locker. "Because you say the word and we'll get out of here. Go get some tacos. Feed the ducks. You love the ducks."

Danny smiles at her.

"I'm okay. I promise. It's just a little overwhelming, you know?" She replies.

"Yeah, I get that." Elsie says. "Hey listen," she leans in, "this morning I overheard Carmilla telling Laura and LaFontaine to give you some space. I thought I was hallucinating."

"Yeah she's been...really cool." Danny finishes lamely.

Elsie eyes her for a minute but lets it go.

"So, you guys are friends now?"

"Sort of?" Danny replies.

Technically, it wasn't a lie.

"That's good, right?" Elsie asks. Danny closes her locker.

"Yeah. Yeah, it is." Danny replies. Elsie grins at her.

"Good. 'Cause Karnstein's actually pretty hot, man."

Danny laughs and shoves at her.

-

"Lawrence, welcome back." Mrs. Vector says, as she wanders past Danny and Carmilla's lab station.

"Thanks." Danny replies.

"Did I mix this right?" Carmilla mutters, lightly elbowing Danny and nodding towards the solution in the beaker.

Danny leans down and eyes it suspiciously.

"I...don't think it's supposed to be that lumpy." She admits.

"Fuck." Carmilla whispers, grabbing the beaker and gliding towards the waste disposal bin.

Danny shakes her head and measures out more sodium chloride. Carmilla returns with a fresh beaker and a scowl. She stands there for a few seconds before groaning.

"I was supposed to add the liquid first, wasn't I?" She asks. Danny reads over the instructions in the lab manual.

"Yes."

Carmilla groans again.

"I knew that." She grabs for the bottle of solution and starts to measure out the liquid into the beaker.

"I can do the mixing if you want?" Danny says.

"Not a chance, Beanpole. You'll spill it everywhere." She says, holding up her hands. "These? Monuments."

Danny laughs loudly as Carmilla winks at her.

-

Danny's standing in line in the cafeteria when suddenly someone grabs her from behind. She turns around in the arms wrapped around her waist and stares down at the top of Laura's head.

"I'm sorry." Laura mumbles into the fabric of her shirt. "Carmilla said to give you space but I just really needed to hug you."

She pulls back, her face flushed red, and clears her throat.

"How are you?" She asks. Danny shrugs.

"That was a stupid question, I'm sorry." Laura mutters.

"No, it's- it's okay." Danny says.

"You sure?"

Danny nods.

"Let's go sit down? I'm not very hungry." Danny says.

Laura follows her over to their usual table where the rest of the girls plus LaFontaine are already assembled. Danny takes her seat next to Perry.

"Man, seriously, I am so sick of-"

"-turkey sandwiches." Everyone at the table finishes Maddie's complaint. 

She scowls.

"Whatever, you guys. Whatever." She grumbles as everyone laughs.

"Why don't you just pack your lunch?" Perry asks, gesturing towards her own paper bag lunch. Maddie scoffs.

"As if I have time for that." She replies.

"You could always, you know, not stay in bed until the last possible second." Julie suggests.

Maddie gives her a horrified look.

"My god, Julia Elizabeth West. It's like you don't even know me anymore."

Danny laughs so hard she gives herself the hiccups.

-

She tries to open the door to the art room, only to find it locked. Frowning to herself, she knocks on the door. She hears the sound of Carmilla moving things around and after a few minutes, she finally appears at the door.

"Hey." She says.

"What are you doing?" Danny asks.

"Nothing." Carmilla says. Danny narrows her eyes.

"Seriously, Carmilla, what are you doing?" Danny repeats.

"It's- don't worry about it right now." Carmilla relents.

She steps aside so Danny can enter the room. Danny notices a canvas set up in the corner that's been covered with an old dropcloth.

"What's that?" She asks, pointing.

"If you so much as even THINK about going anywhere near that I will tears your limbs off." Carmilla threatens. Danny pales.

"Ohhhhhkay then." She says, stepping away.

"I'll show you sometime. Just not now." Carmilla says.

"Sure." Danny replies.

Carmilla slowly walks up to her before tugging her down into a kiss.

"Hey." She whispers against Danny's lips.

"Hey." Danny mumbles back.

"You want to stay or go home?" Carmilla asks.

"Stay." Danny replies.

Carmilla nods and kisses her again and again and again and the churning sea of sadness in her heart has finally stilled.

 

 

_27th._

 

"How many more do we have left?" Danny asks, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Six." Carmilla replies, stretching her legs out under the table. Danny groans.

"I can't believe that guy took our table." Carmilla growls, nodding her head in the direction of a man with a laptop sitting at their usual spot. Danny laughs.

"You're still on that?" She asks.

"It's OUR table." Carmilla grumbles.

Danny tries to ignore the fluttering in her chest at Carmilla's use of the word 'our'.

"Retract your claws, Grumpy Cat." Danny says. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Fine."

Danny smiles.

They work in silence for the remainder of their time and when they finally finish the last question, Danny leans back in her chair and stretches. Carmilla pauses in packing away her things.

"Did your parents get home okay last night?" She asks.

"Yeah. They got in later than they were supposed to, otherwise I would have texted you." Danny replies.

"How's- how's your mom?" Carmilla asks as Danny stands.

"She's..." Danny trails off and shrugs. Carmilla nods.

They gather their bags and walk out together to the parking lot.

"Are you coming to the game?" Danny asks.

"Of course I am. You're playing aren't you." Carmilla replies. She winks and then she's gone.

Danny climbs into her car, ignoring the the way her heart has begun to beat faster. She starts her car and flips on the radio.

"I'm just the words, looking for the tune. Reaching for the moon and y-"

She shuts off the radio with a groan.

 

 

_29th._

 

_Thud._

Danny's back slams into the boards. She growls and shoves back at the Milner defensemen. They were tied at 3 with only a minute left in the game. She skates away from her with the puck and quickly passes it up to Maddie. Maddie spins away from another Milner girl and passes it back to the only team member free.

Gina.

'Oh god.' Danny thinks to herself when she sees two Milner girls speeding towards Gina. 'Don't panic, Gina. Don't panic.'

Gina panics.

She speeds up, headed right for the Milner goalie. Danny fights the urge to squeeze her eyes shut when suddenly, with a move that would make even Sidney Crosby jealous, Gina fakes a shot right at the goalies pads making the goalie drop to her knees before bouncing the puck off of her own skate and then burying it right behind the goalie's head in the back of the net. The goal siren goes off followed immediately by the buzzer.

Danny leaps into the air with a shout as Gina speeds past the goal and slams into the boards. She falls back onto the ice laughing as Danny and Maddie both dive on top of her.

"GINA YOU BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL ANGEL! YOU ABSOLUTE NATIONAL TREASURE!" Danny yells as the rest of the team speeds over and flings themselves to the ice beside of them.

Gina laughs hysterically as Emily and Ali start chanting.

"GINA, GINA, SHE'S OUR QUEEN! SHE SCORED HER FIRST AND SAVED THE TEAM!"

Danny rolls over onto her back and joins in with Perry and Elsie. 

"REYNOLDS, REYNOLDS, SHE'S THE BEST! SHE BROKE THE TIE AND PASSED THE TEST!"

"You guys stop!" Gina giggles, shoving at Julie.

Danny laughs and in the midst of all the madness, catches Carmilla standing behind the scorekeeper's booth and grinning at her from behind her camera.

-

Carmilla moans as Danny curls her fingers again.

They're crammed into the passenger's seat of Danny's car, Carmilla in Danny's lap, parked at the deserted park.

Carmilla tears her mouth away from Danny's neck and kisses her, hard and desperate. Danny feels her body tense up and she bites down on Danny's lip, digging her nails into the back of Danny's neck. When she finally relaxes, Carmilla leans back and runs her fingers gently through Danny's hair.

"Hey." Danny whispers.

"Hey." Carmilla replies, grinning.

She leans in and kisses Danny softly.

"I didn't hurt you, did I? I kind of bit down a little hard." She asks.

"No, you're fine." Danny replies.

Carmilla smiles at her, her eyes flickering all over Danny's face. Danny fights the down the words bubbling up the back of her throat.

"You should probably take me home soon." Carmilla whispers, trailing her fingers across Danny's forehead and down her nose.

"Yeah." Danny breathes out.

Neither girls makes any move to do so.

Carmilla's fingers trail down Danny's cheeks to her jawline.

"You have gorgeous eyes, has anyone ever told you that?" Carmilla whispers.

"A few times." Danny replies.

"They remind me of the ocean. But not the waves at the beach, the calm part out at sea. Where boats can rest and not have to worry about running aground or huge swells or turmoil." Carmilla says, tracing constellations with her fingers into Danny's skin.

Danny blinks.

It's right there on the tip of her tongue.

It's right there.

But then Carmilla's shaking her head slowly and leaning in and they're kissing again and Carmilla's hand is moving down, down, down and then in and the only thing Danny can whisper is Carmilla's name.

 

 

 

_31st._

 

She paces her room, phone in her hand.

She sighs.

She turns and stares at the mural on her wall, her eyes tracing the stars.

'Do it, Lawrence.' She thinks.

But she can't.

This wasn't supposed to happen, there weren't supposed to be feelings.

She can't do this.

But then.

Then, she remembers Carmilla standing in front of this mural for the very first time. She remembers how she once thought she would never see anything more amazing than those space exhibits at the Smithsonian. But then she saw Carmilla's smile. 

'For once in your life, Lawrence. Be brave.' She thinks.

She looks down at her phone.

She hits the call button.

Carmilla picks up on the second ring.

"Hey. You think you can sneak out tonight?"

-

"Hey."

She looks down from the star-filled sky to find Carmilla standing there. Her hands are shoved in the pockets of Danny's letterman jacket and she's watching Danny wearily.

"Hey." Danny replies, smiling. She turns back to look at the stars.

"You okay?" Carmilla asks. Danny nods.

"Come here." She says, holding out her hand.

She feels Carmilla's fingers slide between her own and she tugs her closer, until she's standing in front of her. Danny wraps her arms around Carmilla's waist and pulls her against her body. Carmilla tilts her head back against Danny's shoulder.

They stand in silence for several minutes before Carmilla finally speaks.

"Why did you want me to meet you here, Slapshot?" She asks.

"It's a clear night. You can really see the stars." Danny replies, voice trembling.

Carmilla gently strokes her fingers against the skin of Danny's hands, while Danny tries to ignore the tightness in her chest. She continues to trace the patterns of the constellations in the sky. Ursa Major. Ursa Minor. Orion. She swallows hard. Takes a breath. And then another.

"I love you." Danny whispers.

Carmilla's fingers stutter to a stop against Danny's wrists.

"I love you. You don't have to say it back, you don't have to feel it too. I don't really expect you to. And I understand if you want to end things because you said no feelings but...I just wanted you to know. Just in case anything ever- I just wanted you to know."

Carmilla pulls away from Danny's arms and Danny feels her heart plummeting into free-fall, but just before it hits the ground, Carmilla's hands are on her chest. She leans in, pressing a soft kiss to Danny's jaw.

"I can't say it back. I can't." She whispers.

Danny swallows again.

"That's okay." Danny whispers back.

"But, Danny, I want to- I want..." She trails off, closing her eyes and resting her head against Danny's jaw.

"What do you want?" Danny asks, her hands gently sliding up and down Carmilla's back.

"I want to be with you." Carmilla says, tightening her grip on Danny's shirt.

"Are you sure?" Danny asks, pulling back to look into Carmilla's eyes.

"I'm not good at-" She sighs, "but it's pointless to pretend that we don't have feelings for each other and if there's anybody that I'd want-" 

She smooths her hands out against Danny's chest. Danny's certain that Carmilla can feel how fast her heart is beating.

"If there's anybody that I'd want to be with it's you." Carmilla whispers.

Danny's lips are on hers in an instant.

She thinks that this is the closest she'll ever get to the stars.


	7. February

_1st._

 

"We should go on a date."

Danny looks up from where she's stretched out on her stomach across her bed to stare at Carmilla. Carmilla's lying on her back beside of her, tugging at the strings of the hoodie she commandeered from Danny's closet.

"Yeah? You want to?" Danny asks, resting her cheek on her crossed arms. 

"That's what people do, right? When they're in a relationship with someone, they go out on dates." Carmilla replies.

"But is that what you want?" Danny asks.

Carmilla looks over at her then. She drops the strings and reaches out, brushing some hair out of Danny's eyes.

"With you? I want to do everything."

Danny smiles as Carmilla pulls her hand back and resumes fidgeting with the hoodie strings.

"I've never done this before." Carmilla admits.

"You've never gone on a date before?" Danny asks, quirking an eyebrow. Carmilla shakes her head.

"I've never been in a relationship before. It's always just been hooking up and making out for me. I never really saw the point of romance or official titles or anything like that." She explains.

"What changed your mind?" Danny asks. Carmilla smiles.

"You."

Danny blushes.

"What about you?" Carmilla asks.

"What about me what?" Danny asks. Carmilla giggles.

"I mean, I know you and Laura dated for a long time...what about before her?" She asks. Danny sighs.

"Nothing significant. Laura was the first person I ever actually dated. Like, seriously. Middle school hand-holding doesn't count." Danny replies. Carmilla laughs.

"Why? Did you hold a lot of hands in middle school?" Carmilla teases.

"Actually, no. Just like, two girls. I didn't get my first kiss until freshman year." Danny says, shrugging.

Carmilla looks over and arches an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah? Who was it?" She asks.

Danny flushes bright red and mumbles incoherently.

"Who?" Carmilla repeats.

"Betty. Under the bleachers at the football field after school." Danny replies, looking down at her sheets.

"Betty Spielsdorf?" Carmilla asks, jaw dropping.

"Yeah. Her." Danny says.

"Betty Spielsdorf, class president? Betty Spielsdorf in our AP Chem class? Betty Spielsdorf, head cheerleader and mathlete? THAT Betty Spielsdorf?" Carmilla asks, incredulously.

"Yes, okay. Yes. I made out with Betty Spielsdorf my freshman year." Danny admits. Carmilla stares at her blankly.

"I didn't even know she was into women." Carmilla mutters. Danny laughs.

"Oh boy. Is she ever." She says. Carmilla lightly slaps her side. Danny grins at her.

"Well, I can see why she went for you." Carmilla says while trailing her eyes down Danny's body, dressed in short gym shorts and a tank top.

"Oh you can?" Danny teases.

"Don't push it." Carmilla replies, pointing at her.

"What about you? Who was your first kiss?" Danny asks, grabbing Carmilla's finger and squeezing.

"Eighth grade. Elle Dennis." Carmilla replies.

"Elle D- really?" Danny asks, tilting her head to the side. Carmilla nods.

"It was a Truth or Dare situation." Carmilla says, trying to snag Danny's thumb with her own.

"Didn't she move to like, Oregon or something?" Danny asks, continuing to thumb wrestle with Carmilla.

"I think so. I mean, I know she moved freshman year." Carmilla replies, pinning Danny's thumb briefly.

She lets go of Danny's hand and leans back against the pillows, tugging at the hoodie strings again. Danny rests her head back on her arms.

"So, a date?" Danny asks.

"If you want to." Carmilla replies.

Danny reaches out her hand lays it on Carmilla's stomach.

"Definitely."

Carmilla drops the hoodie strings again and covers Danny's hand with her own. She traces her fingers down to Danny's wrist and plays with the leather bracelet still tied there.

"You're still wearing it." She whispers.

"Well. You like, never took it off before putting it on me, so." Danny says. She frowns. "Do you want it back?"

"No! No, I meant for you to keep it. I just..." Carmilla trails off and sighs. "I just wanted you to know I was there for you."

Danny grips the front of Carmilla's hoodie and tugs lightly until Carmilla rolls over to face her. She leans in and kisses her gently.

"Okay." She whispers against Carmilla's lips. Carmilla kisses her again.

"Okay." Carmilla whispers back.

Danny kisses her over and over.

 

 

_4th._

 

"Stop staring over there."

"I'm not."

"You are."

"Okay, I am. I'm sorry, I'm just still in awe that you made out with her."

Danny drops her head and lowers her hands, shaking with silent laughter. Carmilla elbows her in the back.

"It's not funny." Carmilla mutters.

"It kind of is." Danny replies, still grinning.

"Whatever, Beanpole." Carmilla grumbles, but she's smiling.

Danny laughs and goes back to measuring out the solution. Carmilla flips on the gas and, after a few tries, gets the bunsen burner lit.

"How long are we supposed to heat this stuff?" Carmilla asks. Danny leans over and reads from the lab manual.

"Five minutes." She replies, carefully placing the beaker onto the ringstand. Carmilla sighs.

"You're staring at her again." Danny says. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"I'm not-" She scowls and turns so she's leaning back against the counter beside of Danny. "Whatever."

Danny grins and leans into Carmilla's side, lightly bumping their hips together. Carmilla responds with a hip bump of her own, but with a bit more force causing Danny to almost lose her footing. She playfully shoves at Carmilla's arm. Carmilla shoves her back, laughing.

"Ladies!" Mrs. Vector calls out. They both freeze.

"Sorry." Danny mumbles out.

Mrs. Vector rolls her eyes and goes back to helping the two football players in the back not set themselves on fire.

Carmilla turns to Danny, sheepishly.

"Oops." She whispers.

Danny giggles.

-

"Watch your left side, Foster!" Danny calls out as Ali loses the puck to Elsie.

Danny turns back to Perry.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

"I said, I'm freaking out about what to get LaFontaine for Valentine's Day." Perry replies.

"Well, they're big into science so...you could get like, a rack of test tubes and fill them up with skittles?" Danny suggests.

Perry stares at her, open-mouthed.

"What?" Danny asks, nervously.

"It is a crime, an absolute crime against humanity, that you are single Danny Lawrence. That is the best idea I have ever heard of." Perry replies, nudging her with her glove.

Danny blushes.

"I have my moments." She says, shrugging.

Perry winces as Toby misses an easy block.

"Tobs, watch your glove side!" Danny calls out. She turns back to Perry. 

"What are you going to do for Valentine's Day?" Perry asks.

"Ah, nothing. My parents are going out so I'll probably stay at home and play video games or something." Danny lies, fidgeting with her stick tape.

Perry eyes her for a few moments.

"Well, don't be too pathetic." She finally says. Danny laughs.

"I'll try."

 

 

_5th._

 

"You were really good tonight." Carmilla mumbles against Danny's neck.

They're crammed into Danny's backseat, Carmilla hovering on top of her, after Danny's hockey game. Danny slides her hands under Carmilla's shirt and presses them against her skin.

"Yeah?" She asks. Carmilla kisses her neck again.

"Two goals and an assist? Definitely." Carmilla replies.

"Listen to you, speaking hockey." Danny teases, lightly scratching at Carmilla's back. She shivers.

"My girlfriend is the captain. I've done my research." Carmilla replies.

"Say that word again?" Danny asks, sliding her hand around to the front of Carmilla's jeans.

"Girlfriend." Carmilla repeats.

Danny grins and unbuttons Carmilla's pants, sliding her fingers down the front of them.

"I like hearing that." Danny mumbles. Carmilla moves away from her neck and back up to her mouth, kissing her gently.

"I like saying-" She cuts off with a moan as Danny's fingers slide inside of her.

Danny kisses her, hard, as Carmilla's hands tangle in her hair. She quickens her pace, Carmilla moaning against her mouth.

Carmilla falls apart repeating Danny's name, over and over.

 

 

_7th._

 

Danny's pacing in her living room, waiting on her parents to get home.

'Just because I don't want the whole school knowing our business doesn't mean I'm going to ask you to lie to your parents.' Carmilla had said.

She sighs and flops down on the couch. She was perfectly fine with keeping their relationship a secret from everyone, after all, it was nobody's business but their own. Plus, Carmilla had never been in a relationship before and with how private and guarded she was, and then her mother-

She shudders.

-the less outside interference, the better. 

But her parents.

She couldn't keep this from them.

Honestly, her mother had probably figured it out by now, knowing her. But still. They needed to know. Danny trusted them. Plus, they both adored Carmilla.

The front door opens.

"-I just don't understand why they're making us put them through all of this testing nonsense. Dios! They are children! Tiny children!" Beatrice rants. Derek shrugs.

"That's the school system for you, these days. Everything is about results. If I didn't love teaching kids so much, I would quit." He says. "Hey, Space Cadet."

"Hey guys." Danny says, her foot tapping nervously on the floor.

"Are you okay, querida? You look upset?" Her mother asks. Derek pauses in taking off his coat.

"No. No, I'm not upset. But I do need to talk to you guys about something." She replies.

"Is everything okay? Did something- is Carmilla okay?" Derek asks.

"She's fine." Danny replies, smiling.

He walks into the living room and sits next to Danny on the couch, draping his arm over her shoulders. Beatrice sits down across from her in the rocking chair.

"What is it?" She asks.

"Well, um-" Danny rubs her hands on her legs. "Carmilla and I are...kind of dating."

"Kind of?" Derek asks as Beatrice grins.

"We are. Dating. We're dating." Danny replies.

"It's about time." Beatrice says. "I knew you two would wind up falling for each other. Casual sex either leads to feelings or disaster, there is no in between."

Derek pales.

"Casual what?"

"Nothing, dad." Danny says quickly, shooting her mother a look.

"Wait a second-"

"-oh, honestly, Derek. How did you not see the way they look at each other?"

"Guys-"

"-but what's this about casual-"

"Dad, please-"

"-it's not a big deal, it's not like she can get pregnant and she's almost eighteen-"

"Ma-"

"-I know that, but-"

"-like we didn't sneak around in high school-"

Danny growls loudly and stands up.

"If we're done talking about my sex life, I've told you all I needed to tell you now I am going to bed!"

"Danny, it's like 5:00." Derek says.

"Bed!" Danny yells back, bolting upstairs.

"Congratulations, you've scared her." Beatrice deadpans. Derek gasps.

"I scared her? You're the one who brought up casual sex!" He argues.

"Yes, but you were the one who freaked out about it." She says.

"I CAN STILL HEAR YOU!" Danny calls from over the upstairs railing.

They take one look at her mortified face and burst out laughing.

Danny groans.

 

 

_9th._

 

"Why is everybody staring at me?" Maddie asks.

"We're just waiting for the inevitable bitching about the turkey sandwiches to start." Danny replies.

Maddie kicks her under the table.

"Hey, Danny, when's our test in English?" Laura asks.

"The 19th." Danny replies, taking a bite of her apple.

"Damn. I'm so swamped." Laura mutters.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Maddie says. "And playoffs are coming up in April."

Perry, Julie and Danny all groan.

"I don't even want to think about how stressed I'm going to be." Julie mumbles.

"And we'll probably start hearing back from colleges soon." Perry says.

"Why do you people insist on ruining my good mood." Danny grumbles, taking another bite of her apple.

"Our sole purpose on this planet is to aggravate you, Danny Lawrence." Maddie teases.

Danny kicks her as LaFontaine laughs loudly. Her phone buzzes in her pocket. She slides it out and checks it discreetly.

'Your parents have that dinner thing tonight, right?'

'Yes.' She types back, hitting send.

"You guys are making me terrified for my senior year." Laura says. Julie laughs.

"It's not that bad, I promise." She says, patting Laura on the back.

Danny's phone buzzes again.

'Can I come home with you?' Carmilla's text asks.

'Of course, babe.' Danny types out, hitting send.

Her phone buzzes again, just as she slides it back in her pocket.

'I like it when you call me that.'

Danny grins.

"Who are you talking to?" Maddie asks.

Danny's head shoots up.

"Uh, no- nobody." She lies, fumbling to slide her phone back into her pocket.

She makes the mistake of looking sideways at Perry and finds her watching her with an unreadable expression.

She swallows, hard.

-

"I think Perry knows." Danny says.

Carmilla lifts her head up from Danny's bare stomach.

"You do?" Carmilla asks. Danny shrugs, lightly scratching at the back of Carmilla's neck.

"I mean, she's been acting like she knows something's up with me ever since we first started hanging out. And then today when I was texting you at lunch...I don't know she just gave me this look like she knew." She replies.

Carmilla kisses her stomach and lightly traces her fingers along Danny's thigh.

"It's okay. If she knows, it's okay." Carmilla says.

"You sure?" Danny asks, shivering as Carmilla shifts and starts kissing her way up Danny's chest.

"Yes. Perry's your best friend. If she knows, it's fine. You should talk to her." Carmilla says, gently biting down on Danny's neck. Danny moans, softly.

"She- she's not going to tell anyone." Danny promises, sliding her hands down to Carmilla's hips.

"I know, baby." Carmilla mumbles.

Danny suddenly flips Carmilla over onto her back, hovering over her face with a smile. She leans in and kisses her and Carmilla moans against her mouth. Danny pulls away and slides down the bed and Carmilla's body, gently tracing her fingers up Carmilla's legs to her thighs. She kisses her way up the inside of Carmilla's thigh before sliding her tongue through her. Carmilla's head falls back against the pillows.

She takes her time, building Carmilla up to the edge before slowing down and backing her away from it. Carmilla tightens her grip on Danny's hair with a groan.

"Danny, please-"

Danny speeds up then. This time she doesn't slow down when Carmilla gets close, and she crashes over the edge with the loudest moan Danny's heard her make. She tugs on Danny's wrists until Danny slides back up her body.

"You okay?" Danny whispers as Carmilla pulls her down on top of her.

Carmilla kisses her before rolling them sideways and pressing her face into Danny's shoulder.

"Say it?" She asks, mumbling the words into Danny's skin.

"I love you." Danny whispers against the top of her head.

Carmilla's grip on Danny's back tightens.

 

 

_10th._

 

"Hey!" Perry says, sliding into the seat across from Danny.

"Hey, Per." Danny replies, grinning.

"What's going on?" Perry asks, taking a sip of her coffee.

They're sitting in the coffee shop near Perry's neighborhood. Danny had called Perry this morning to see if she had the time to meet up.

"Listen, I know I've been acting weird for a few months-"

"-not 'weird' just...different." Perry interrupts. "It's not a bad thing, I can just tell something is up with you."

"Yeah. Different." Danny says, fidgeting with her coffee cup.

"Danny-"

"You know, don't you." Danny says, not looking up from the table.

Perry hums quietly and leans forward in her chair.

"I don't 'know' anything for sure, Danny, but I'm going to assume here that there's something going on between you and Carmilla?" She asks, gently.

Danny nods her head. Perry breathes out a sigh.

"Is it like- I mean, what is it? Are you guys like...you know, 'doing it'?" Perry says, making air quotes. Danny bites back a laugh.

"Well, yeah." She replies. Perry blushes.

"So, you two are a thing or like a _thing_?" Perry asks.

"We're kind of dating." Danny mutters. Perry leans forward further.

"Kind of?"

"Okay we are. We are. Dating." Danny replies. "But you cannot tell anyone. Like, not even LaFontaine. And especially not-"

"-Laura." Perry finishes.

Danny nods her head and Perry sits back in her seat. They sip their coffee in silence for a few moments before a look of complete and utter horror forms on Perry's face.

"Oh my god." She says.

"What?" Danny asks, sitting up straighter.

"Danny, Laura's going to flip her lid!" Perry hisses.

"I know." Danny groans.

"Not because she's going to be mad or anything but-"

"-because it's us and we're not telling her." Danny finishes. Perry nods.

"Why aren't you telling anyone now?" Perry asks, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Because it's really new for Carmilla, you know? She's never done the relationship thing before and she's really closed up about feelings so the less people we have badgering us the better." Danny explains. "And you're you, so like, we trust you and stuff."

"It's because I'm the mom." Perry says. Danny laughs.

"Yes. That's it." Danny replies.

"Well, honestly, you've been less broody-"

"-I do NOT brood."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You've been happier lately and if it's because of Carmilla then...I say go for it. Just be careful with each other. I may not know a lot about Carmilla but from what I've gathered she's got some things going on..." Perry trails off. "And you. You're basically a puppy trapped in a human body but I've seen you heartbroken and I'd rather not see it again."

Danny nods.

"You're pretty much the best friend ever." She says. Perry grins and raises her coffee cup in Danny's direction.

"Cheers!" She says, grinning.

Danny laughs.

 

 

_13th._

 

"What did you get for number twelve?" Carmilla asks.

"Twenty-four." Danny replies.

"Aha!" Carmilla says, doing a little victory punch. Danny grins.

She stretches her legs out under the table, resting them on either side of Carmilla's. Leaning back, she runs her hand through her already tousled hair.

"How many more do we have left?" She asks. Carmilla counts silently.

"Six." Carmilla replies, leaning back in her chair and pressing her legs against Danny's.

Danny groans and stretches back over the back of her chair, covering her face with her hands. She feels Carmilla's legs press harder into hers. She sits up to find Carmilla staring at her with such a look of adoration that she freezes.

"What?" She whispers. Carmilla shakes her head.

"Nothing." Carmilla replies, smiling. "You're just gorgeous."

Danny blushes.

"So are you." She whispers back. Carmilla's smile broadens, crinkling her nose.

She goes back to calculating the answer to the next question while Danny tries to stop her heart from beating out of her chest.

 

 

_14th._

 

The doorbell rings for the third time and Danny continues to silently and erratically gesture at her parents to 'get lost' from in front of the door. Finally her father unceremoniously grabs her mother around her waist and picks her up, walking her backwards towards the kitchen. She swats at him several times but he doesn't drop her. When they finally disappear out of sight, Danny opens the door.

Carmilla's standing there, in her leather jacket and a tight black button down, spinning a red envelope around in her hands. She's straightened her hair and she's wearing lipstick. Danny sways.

"Hey." She breathes out, suddenly self-conscious of her grey v-neck sweater and her eyeliner. Carmilla stares at her for a few moments.

"Hey." She whispers back.

Danny hears a thumping sound from the kitchen followed by her dad swearing under his breath. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Come in, I uh- I got you something but it's in my room." She says, stepping aside so Carmilla can walk in the house. "You can come up with me and then we'll go to that movie."

"Sounds perfect." Carmilla replies, smiling.

Danny leads the way upstairs and gently opens her door. She walks over to her desk and grabs the gift bag off of it and hands it to Carmilla.

"It's really really lame and cheesy but I saw it and I thought it was cute and-"

She's interrupted by Carmilla giggling as she pulls the stuffed puppy from the gift bag.

"Oh my god, I love it." Carmilla says, running her fingers through its fur. Danny blushes.

"I figured, you know, if you were having a bad day and you couldn't come over..." Danny trails off and reaches out to touch the stuffed puppy in Carmilla's hands. "You'd have her."

Carmilla reaches out and grabs the front of Danny's sweater, pulling her into a rough kiss. She slides her arms around Danny's neck as Danny's wind around her waist. After a few moments, she pulls back.

"Thank you." She whispers against Danny's lips.

"You're welcome." Danny replies.

"Oh! I have you something too." Carmilla says, reaching for the large red envelope she had set down on the desk while opening Danny's gift.

Danny takes it from her and opens it. A thick photograph slides out of it and Danny freezes.

"Holy shit." She breathes out.

"It's a lithograph, which means it's legitimate and there's only a set number of those in existence." Carmilla explains.

Danny continues to stare at the picture of Neil Armstrong standing next to the American flag from the moon landing.

"How did you-" She whispers.

"I have my resources." Carmilla replies, grinning.

Danny reverently places the lithograph down on her desk before turning back to Carmilla, open-mouthed.

"Carm, this is..." She trails off, gesturing.

"Perfect?" Carmilla asks. Danny nods. "Good, its just like you then."

Danny shakes her head before gently taking Carmilla's face in her hands and kissing her again and again.

-

"Oh, that was such a bad punch. Like, seriously, he would have broken his hand." Carmilla whispers, leaning into Danny's side more.

"Right?" She replies. She winces as the hero whacks one of the bad guys with a metal pipe. "That was so fake."

"Oooo, and he turns his head the wrong way." Carmilla laughs, grabbing another handful of popcorn from the bag in Danny's lap.

"This is so bad." Danny laughs, adjusting the arm she has draped around Carmilla.

"That's the point right? We came here to make fun of it?" Carmilla asks.

"Oh yeah." Danny replies, grinning at her.

They both wince as the hero dives out of the way of a cheesy explosion shot.

"Oh my god that would never happen." Carmilla says, resting her head against Danny's neck.

"The pressure wave alone would have killed him. Too many G-forces." Danny says, matter-of-factly.

"You're so sexy when you speak nerd." Carmilla says, kissing her lightly on the jaw.

Danny's really glad the movie theater is dark because her entire face feels like it's on fire.

-

"I don't really want to go home." Danny admits.

They're walking through the nearly deserted theater parking lot and holding hands.

"Me either." Carmilla replies.

"Where's your mom?" Danny asks, as they reach her car.

"Out of town until tomorrow." Carmilla replies.

"So you can stay out later?" Danny asks.

"Yes." Carmilla says.

Danny grins.

-

"Fuck, right there." Carmilla groans out as Danny continues moving her hand between Carmilla's thighs.

She kisses across Carmilla's neck as Carmilla's fingers dig into her bare shoulders. Danny slides her free hand up Carmilla's back to press her closer. Carmilla's hands move from Danny's shoulders to grip the headrest of Danny's passenger's seat. Her entire body tenses up and she drops her head to kiss Danny roughly as she comes.

"Jesus." She whispers against Danny's mouth.

Danny grins and kisses her again and again until Carmilla pulls away slowly.

"Good Valentine's Day?" Danny whispers.

"Best Valentine's Day." Carmilla whispers back.

Danny kisses her one last time before Carmilla settles her head against Danny's shoulder. Danny lightly traces her fingers up and down Carmilla's back.

"Thank you." Carmilla mumbles against Danny's skin.

"For what?" Danny asks, looking down at the top of Carmilla's head.

"Everything." Carmilla whispers.

Danny kisses the top of her head as her heart threatens to beat right out of her chest.

 

 

_16th._

 

"How was everybody's Valentine's Day?" Laura asks, dropping into her usual seat next to Julie.

"Jules and I marathoned every single Sandra Bullock RomCom we own." Maddie replies, glaring at her sandwich. Julie laughs and nudges her.

"LaFontaine took me out to dinner." Perry says, blushing. LaF grins.

"I did absolutely nothing interesting." Danny lies. Perry pinches her knee under the table and she knows she's going to have to spill every detail at hockey practice later.

"Seriously, nothing?" Maddie asks.

"Nothing." Danny replies, shrugging.

"I tried to talk Carmilla into coming over and watching Sleepless In Seattle but she said she had an art project to finish." Laura says, shrugging and reaching for her cookie.

Perry pinches Danny's knee again, harder.

"Ouch!" Danny yelps, jumping in her chair.

"The hell's the matter with you?" Maddie asks. Perry immediately looks away.

"Charlie Horse." Danny explains, rubbing her ankle.

Everybody but Perry winces. As soon as everyone else is preoccupied, Danny turns to Perry.

'Practice.' She mouths. Perry nods.

-

"Holy moly, she seriously got you a lithograph of the moon landing photo?" Perry asks.

"Yeah! And I got her a dumb stuffed dog." Danny replies, shrugging.

"Oh no, it's not the dog itself, it's the idea behind it. She loves it, I'm sure." Perry assures.

"She did seem pretty happy about it." Danny says. "Elsie, be careful!"

Elsie narrowly avoids crashing into Jess. Emily fires off a shot at Toby, who actually blocks it with her pads.

"Nice save, Toby!" Perry yells. "Oh finally, she's getting the hang of it."

"She is getting better." Danny says.

"So then what?" Perry asks.

"Oh! Right. Yeah. We went to the movies." Danny says.

"What did you guys see?"

"You know that really lame new action movie?"

"The one with that guy who looks like a younger Bruce Willis?"

"Jason Statham, yeah."

"That one? Danny, that one got terrible reviews!" Perry says.

"Yeah, I know. We went to make fun of it. It was so much fun." Danny gushes. Perry laughs.

"Oh my god, you've found someone to indulge your love of picking apart crappy action films. You must be in heaven."

"Oh yeah." Danny replies, grinning. "Gina! Seriously!"

Gina looks up sheepishly from where she's sprawled out on the ice.

"Sorry, Cap." She calls back.

Danny shakes her head as Perry cackles next to her.

 

 

_19th._

 

Danny skates as fast as she can towards the Bloomington goal. Maddie passes her the puck and she fires off a shot that sails under the goalie's elbow. The goal siren sounds.

"Yes!" She cheers.

They were now up 4-2 early in the third. This was their last game of the month and Danny wanted to make sure they won by a considerable margin so the girls' spirits would be high heading into playoff time.

Elsie skates over and claps her on the back.

"Nice one, boss."

"Stop calling me that." Danny replies, lightly shoving at Elsie's helmet.

She looks up into the bleachers and catches Carmilla grinning at her from beside of LaF. She grins back.

The rest of the period passes with another goal from Julie and Silas wins 5-2. Danny skates off the ice with Perry.

"I'm assuming you have plans?" She teases.

"I do." Danny replies, smiling. Perry laughs.

"Have fun, Danny." She calls out as Danny heads back to the locker room.

Danny winks at her.

-

"Hey there, Slapshot." Carmilla calls out.

Danny closes her trunk and turns around.

"Hey yourself." She replies.

Carmilla walks up to her and slips her arms around Danny's waist. Danny kisses the top of her head. Carmilla smiles.

"You guys were really good tonight." She says.

"We were! Did you see Julie's two goals?" Danny says, bouncing a little. Carmilla laughs and slides her hands up to Danny's face.

"I did." She replies. She frowns. "Your ears feel like popcicles."

"I'm okay." Danny says, shrugging.

Carmilla shakes her head and reaches up, taking off her own beanie and tugging it onto Danny's head. She slides it down over Danny's ears with a smile.

"There. You aren't supposed to let puppy's ears get cold, you know." She says. Danny laughs.

"Oh?" Danny asks.

"Yes." Carmilla replies.

"Do you want-"

"I can't." Carmilla interrupts. "But I definitely want to."

Danny smiles at her.

"That's okay." She reaches out and pulls Carmilla against her. "We have time."

Carmilla tugs her down for a kiss, grinning.

 

 

_21st._

 

"I don't understand any of this fucking bullshit." Carmilla growls, dropping her textbook to the floor. Danny laughs.

"You say that and then you make an A on the exam." Danny says, slipping her arm around Carmilla's shoulders.

"I'm just tired." Carmilla admits.

"You want to take a break?" Danny asks.

"Yes." Carmilla practically moans. Danny laughs.

Danny suddenly removes her arm and jumps up.

"Hey, come here." She says, reaching out her hands to Carmilla. Carmilla eyes them.

"Why."

"I want to show you something." Danny replies.

Carmilla shrugs and lets Danny pull her from the couch. Danny leads her over to her drum set and sits down on the stool behind it. She pats her leg and Carmilla slides onto her lap.

"Have you ever played before?" Danny asks, picking up her drumsticks.

"No." Carmilla answers.

Danny hands her the sticks and maneuvers Carmilla's hands so she's holding them properly. She then slides her hands down to lightly grip Carmilla's wrists.

"Not too hard." Danny instructs, guiding Carmilla's hands until she's playing a simple rhythm. 

Carmilla laughs as she accidentally skips a beat while trying to replicate Danny's beat. Danny grins next to her ear. 

"You're distracting." Carmilla murmurers. Danny laughs and kisses the side of Carmilla's head.

"Yeah right, you just suck Karnstein." She teases.

Carmilla reaches out and hits the cymbal, hard, making a loud crashing sound.

"See?" Danny laughs.

Carmilla leans back into Danny and lets her guide her through the simple rhythm again. This time she mimics it perfectly, only a little slower than Danny's demonstration.

"Look at you go." Danny says.

Carmilla throws her head back and laughs as she repeats the sequence again. She hands the sticks to Danny.

"Show me something."

Danny takes the sticks from her and plays a rhythm Carmilla recognizes from a Fleetwood Mac song. She ends it with a drumroll that makes Carmilla cackle.

"Show me how to do that?" Carmilla asks.

Danny hands her the sticks back and once again shows Carmilla how to hold them. She guides a giggling Carmilla through a messy drumroll.

"I think I'll leave the drumming to you." Carmilla admits as Danny slides her hands from Carmilla's wrists up to her shoulders and squeezes.

"Maybe that's wise." Danny replies.

Carmilla gives her another nose-crinkling smile and kisses her.

Danny's pretty sure she's never going to get tired of that smile.

 

 

_24th._

 

"You put too much-"

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did."

"Didn't."

"Did."

"Did not."

"Did to."

"Carmilla."

"Danny."

The two stare at each other over the bubbling beaker, grinning.

"Look at Dave's. His is doing the same thing." Danny says, nodding in the direction of Dave's lab station.

"So?"

"So, kid's a super genius. There's no way he fucked up. So we're good." Danny replies. Carmilla sighs.

"Fine. But if this thing explodes and I die and I am so going to haunt you." Carmilla says.

"You're so dramatic." Danny says, laughing.

"Yeah, well, you're stuck with me." Carmilla teases.

"Oh, damn." Danny jokes.

Carmilla shoves at her as Danny laughs.

"Idiot." She mutters, but she's smiling.

" _Your_ idiot." Danny mumbles, leaning in close to Carmilla's ear.

Carmilla's face softens and the smile she gives Danny is blinding.

-

"No game this week." Maddie says, dropping into the seat across from Danny.

"Yep." Danny replies, taking a bite of her pizza. Maddie eyes it with disgust. Danny rolls her eyes.

"Got any plans?" Julie asks, sitting next to Maddie.

"Lab report with Carm." Danny replies around her mouthful of pizza.

Laura's eyes snap to her face at the use of the nickname. Danny tries to ignore the heavy feeling in her stomach as she swallows.

"Oh yeah, how is short, hot and broody?" Maddie asks. Julie elbows her.

"She's actually a decent partner." Danny replies, picking a pepperoni off her pizza and popping it into her mouth, avoiding Laura's eyes.

"That's a plus." Julie says. Danny nods.

"Where's LaF?" Maddie asks as Perry sits down alone.

"Sick. They have an ear infection." She replies.

Everyone winces.

"Yikes." Danny mumbles.

"Yeah, tell me about it. I tried to call them last night but they could barely hear me and I wound up having to hang up." Perry says.

"Well, they'll probably be fine by Monday." Laura says, her voice hopeful. Perry nods.

Danny lightly elbows Perry's arm and grins at her. Perry smiles at her.

"God, you're such a puppy." Perry jokes.

Danny laughs so hard she has a coughing fit.

 

 

_26th._

 

"I never knew how busy this place was on Fridays." Carmilla remarks as a small child almost bumps into Danny's chair.

"Yeah, I know." Danny replies, waving at the child who immediately perks up and waves back.

"Did you put 'turn down the heat' for number fifteen?" Carmilla asks. Danny nods. "Excellent."

"What about seventeen? Did you get this?" Danny slides her lab book over to Carmilla and points to the balanced formula.

Carmilla looks it over for a moment before nodding.

"Yeah, that looks right." She says.

"Hey, are you free Sunday?" Danny asks.

"Yeah, my mom has a trial all day...why?" Carmilla replies.

"Want to go on a date with me?" Danny asks. Carmilla laughs.

"Of course. Where did you have in mind?" She questions.

"It's a surprise." Danny replies, wiggling her eyebrows.

They finish their report quickly and Danny walks Carmilla outside.

"I'll pick you up Sunday morning." She says as Carmilla pulls her into a hug.

"Morning?" Carmilla groans.

"Trust me. It's going to take a little while to get there." Danny replies, dropping a kiss to Carmilla's head.

"Fine." Carmilla agrees. "But you'd better let me sleep in the car."

"Okay." Danny promises, laughing.

 

 

_28th._

 

"Danny, seriously. Where are we going?" Carmilla asks for the 5th time in the last hour and a half.

"You'll see when we get there." Danny replies, cryptically.

Carmilla leans her head back against the headrest with a groan. Danny grins and turns back to the road. She moves her hand from the gearshift to Carmilla's thigh and squeezes.

"You need that to shift gears." Carmilla says, not opening her eyes.

Danny smiles and keeps her hand where it is. Carmilla covers it with her own.

-

Forty-five minutes later, Danny pulls into a parking lot with only a few cars in it.

"Hanging Rock Park?" Carmilla reads from the sign hanging above the ranger station.

"Yes. Come on." Danny says, hopping out of the car and moving to her trunk.

She pops it open and pulls out a dufflebag. Draping it over her shoulder, she gestures for Carmilla to follow her to the trail up ahead.

"This place is usually pretty deserted on Sundays so I figured this would be a good time to show you my spot." Danny explains as they follow the trail.

"Where is 'your spot' exactly?" Carmilla asks, reaching for Danny's hand.

"You'll see." Danny replies.

-

"Holy fuck." Carmilla breathes out.

They get to the bottom of the trail and Danny beams. A huge waterfall cascades down the side of the rocks up ahead.

"Come on." Danny says, squeezing Carmilla's hand and leading her down the rocky path next to the water.

"What are we doing?" Carmilla asks, letting Danny lead her along.

Danny doesn't answer. Instead, she leads her over to the side of the waterfall. She lets go of Carmilla's hand and jumps under the water to the other side.

"Come on!" She calls out. Carmilla stares at her.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes!"

Carmilla eyes her and the water for a few seconds before leaping after Danny with a squeal.

Behind the waterfall is a little cavern. Danny drops the mysterious dufflebag while Carmilla marvels at the back of the waterfall.

"We're under a waterfall." She says.

"Technically, we're behind it. But. You know. Same difference really." Danny says.

Carmilla turns to find Danny unpacking a blanket and some tupperware containers.

"What's this?" Carmilla asks.

"You ever been on a picnic?" Danny asks, grinning.

Carmilla laughs.

-

"I cannot believe I just had a picnic under a waterfall." Carmilla says, leaning back against Danny's chest.

She's sitting in between Danny's legs on the blanket Danny packed. Danny smooths her hands along Carmilla's thighs.

"Behind." Danny corrects. Carmilla slaps at her hands.

"Whatever. It's still really romantic." She replies. Danny blushes.

"Well, I just figured..." Danny trails off.

"What?" Carmilla asks, nudging Danny's arm.

"I just figured you'd like it here. It's nice to get away." Danny admits.

Carmilla slides her fingers between Danny's and squeezes.

"It is nice." Carmilla replies.

They sit in silence, staring out at the waterfall for a little while longer before Danny leans down and presses a kiss to Carmilla's ear.

"I love you." She mumbles.

Carmilla turns in Danny's arms and kisses her again and again and again. She pulls back slowly, gripping Danny's face.

"You mean the world to me, Danny Lawrence." She whispers.

They're kissing again and Danny's positive that this is what flying feels like.


	8. March

_1st._

 

The door to the art room is locked again, so Danny knocks and waits for Carmilla to open it.

"Seriously?" She asks, leaning against the doorframe.

"Do you not understand the concept of 'top secret', Beanpole?" Carmilla teases.

Danny smiles and walks past her, the easel in the corner is once again covered by an old dropcloth.

"You're still not going to let me see what you're working on?" Danny asks, leaning against the table in the art room.

"Not a chance." Carmilla replies, smiling. Danny shakes her head.

Carmilla makes her way over to where Danny's leaning and reaches up, unbuttoning the top button on her shirt. Danny quirks an eyebrow and Carmilla smirks at her, unbuttoning the second button.

"What are you doing?" Danny whispers.

Carmilla doesn't answer. Instead, she unbuttons the third and fourth buttons. She watches Danny's face and goes for the fifth. When Danny doesn't stop her, she unbuttons it and slides her fingers to the last button. Danny licks her lips and Carmilla unbuttons it. She slips her hands under the material of Danny's shirt and lightly scratches at Danny's sides. Danny shivers.

"Someone could walk in." Danny whispers.

"You can tell me to stop whenever you want." Carmilla whispers back.

Carmilla kisses her, her hands sliding up to Danny's shoulders. She pushes the shirt down to Danny's elbows and holds it there, trapping her arms in place. Danny laughs against Carmilla's mouth. Carmilla kisses her way down to Danny's neck, biting down gently. Danny moans.

"Shh." Carmilla mutters, trailing her lips across Danny's shoulders.

Danny's hands flex at her side and Carmilla grins, tracing her tongue from Danny's shoulder back up to her neck before biting down again. Danny whines. Carmilla chuckles against Danny's skin. She kisses behind her ear before pulling back and lightly dragging Danny's shirt back up her arms and fixing it. She starts re-buttoning it and Danny makes a quiet noise of protest.

"After school." Carmilla says, kissing her lightly. "I promise."

Danny watches her button the last button before sliding her arms around Carmilla's back and pulling her into a hug. She places several noisy kisses on Carmilla's cheek. Carmilla laughs and shoves at her.

"God, you're such a dork."

Danny winks at her.

-

"You're late!" Maddie calls out as Danny skates onto the ice.

"Yeah, I had to talk to Mr. Benson about something." Danny lies.

Maddie shrugs. Danny circles Toby's goal and passes one of the free pucks to Julie.

"Passing drills!" She calls out.

She skates over to Perry's end, who's eyeing her suspiciously. 

"You weren't really talking to Mr. Benson, were you?" She asks.

Danny reaches over and flips Perry's mask down.

"Nope."

Perry swats at her with her goalie stick.

"Unbelievable." Perry mutters, but she's smiling.

"Yeah, Carmilla said the same thing...but in a different tone of voice." Danny replies, grinning.

Perry groans and shakes her head.

"I don't need to know details, Danny." She says.

Danny laughs.

 

 

_4th._

 

"Yes!" Danny cheers from the bench as Emily scores.

They were now up 4-1 in the final minutes of the 3rd period. The Stonewall goalie bangs her stick on the ice as Gina and Becca congratulate Emily. The girls skate back to the bench and Danny, Julie and Maddie take their place for the line change.

The remaining minutes pass without any problems and Silas emerges victorious again. The team skates over to pat Perry on her helmet one by one and when Danny finally skates up last, Perry slings her arm around her.

"Playoffs are going to be a breeze." Danny says. Perry groans.

"Please do not jinx us." She says. Danny laughs.

"It's fine. We'll be fine." Danny replies.

They skate over to the bench and grab their stuff before heading to the locker room. Danny catches Carmilla and Laura standing behind the scorekeeper's booth. Laura waves enthusiastically while Carmilla smirks at her. Danny grins.

"When are you going to tell Laura?" Perry asks, in a low voice. Danny shrugs.

"We just need more time." Danny replies honestly.

"She'll be more mad that you kept it from her than-"

"I know." Danny interrupts as they walk into the locker room.

"Who will be mad?" Toby asks.

Danny lightly shoves the back of her head.

"Your mom." She jokes.

"Mature." Perry mumbles.

Danny rolls her eyes.

-

"Lookin' good out there, Gingersnap."

Danny smiles and closes her trunk.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." She turns around to find Carmilla leaning against her Camero.

Danny gestures for her to climb in, so she does while Danny slides into the driver's side.

"Hey baby." Carmilla whispers as soon as they're settled. Danny blushes.

"Hey." She whispers back.

"I don't have a lot of time, my mother's making me come home early. Drive me home?" Carmilla asks.

Danny leans across the seat and kisses her softly.

"Of course." She mumbles. Carmilla smiles.

Danny leans back and starts her car. She pulls out of the parking lot as Carmilla's hand slides around her wrist.

"Do you still want me to come read over your paper Sunday while your mom is out?" Danny asks.

"Yes. But you can't come inside." Carmilla replies.

"I know. I won't." Danny promises.

"Which is sad because I miss having you in my bed." Carmilla admits, quietly. Danny glances over at her.

"You do?" She asks. Carmilla squeezes her arm.

"Definitely."

The rest of the ride to Carmilla's house is silent, with Carmilla gently tracing her fingers up and down Danny's arm. Danny stops the car a few houses down from Carmilla's.

"Why didn't you drive to the game this time?" Danny asks.

"I rode with Laura so she could tell me about her run-in with Rick Harris in the hall today." Carmilla replies, turning to face Danny. Danny stiffens.

"What did he want?" Danny asks.

"The usual. Pestering her about 'dropping her lesbian tendencies' and going to prom with him." Carmilla replies, rolling her eyes with a scowl.

"I hope she drop kicked him in the balls." Danny growls. Carmilla laughs.

"You know Laura. She avoids violence. But, she did tell me she might have tripped him on her way up the stairs." Carmilla says.

"Good for her." Danny says.

"I keep telling her she just needs to deck him like one time. Or let one of us do it." Carmilla says. "But anyway, I told her my mom was picking me up after the game because I figured I could con you into taking me home."

"Oh did you?" Danny teases, leaning forward and lightly kissing Carmilla on the lips. Carmilla grins.

"It worked, didn't it?" She jokes. "I'd better go."

"Okay. See you Sunday?"

"Of course."

Carmilla starts to open the door but pauses. Instead she leans into the backseat and grabs Danny's hoodie she was wearing earlier.

"I'm sleeping in this." Carmilla proclaims, opening the door and jumping out. Danny laughs.

"Whatever you want." Danny calls out after her.

Carmilla turns back and winks before closing the door.

 

 

_7th._

 

Danny hops out of her car and closes the door as Carmilla stands up from the porch steps. 

"Hey there." Danny says as she walks up to where Carmilla's waiting.

"Hey." Carmilla replies. She smiles, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Danny asks quietly, leaning in closer.

"It's nothing." Carmilla replies, reaching out and resting her hand against Danny's stomach. Danny watches her face carefully for a few more moments before nodding.

"Okay. Do you have your paper?" She asks.

Carmilla nods and gently tugs on the hem of Danny's shirt. Danny follows her back to the steps and they sit down.

"Here." Carmilla says, handing her the paper.

Danny takes it from her and reads over it quietly.

"This is really good, babe." She says. Carmilla blushes.

"Is it? I was a little worried I wasn't getting my point across." Carmilla asks. Danny shakes her head.

"No, it's really good. You might want to add a little bit to your conclusion but other than that it's great." She replies, turning to face Carmilla.

"I really want you to come inside." Carmilla whispers.

"I don't want to get you in trouble." Danny mumbles back.

"I know." Carmilla says, looking down at her paper in Danny's hands. "I just miss having you in my bed."

Danny reaches out and runs her fingers through Carmilla's hair. 

"Do you want to come over for awhile?" She asks. Carmilla shakes her head.

"I can't. My mom will be home in an hour and if I'm gone she'll flip."

Danny nods and leans in, kissing Carmilla softly.

"Okay." She whispers.

Carmilla's phone buzzes in her pocket. She groans and checks it. Her face pales.

"My mom's on her way home now, actually." She says.

"It's okay, babe, I'll leave now." Danny says, standing.

"Okay." Carmilla says, nodding frantically. Danny hands her her paper back.

"Your paper's good, just add some stuff to the conclusion." 

"Okay. Thank you." Carmilla says, not meeting her eyes.

Danny notices how panicky Carmilla is getting. She gently pulls her into her arms.

"You've got time, it's okay." She whispers. She feels Carmilla relax a little. "If you need anything, call me. Or just come over."

Carmilla nods and softly kisses Danny on the neck. Danny reluctantly lets go and backs away to her car.

"I don't like leaving you here." She says.

"I know." Carmilla replies.

"Please be careful."

"I will."

The entire drive home Danny can't shake the feeling that something is really, really wrong.

 

 

_8th._

 

She discreetly checks her phone for about the thousandth time this morning.

Nothing.

She glances over at Carmilla's empty stool and sighs, running her hands through her hair before trying to focus on the lab in front of her.

She hasn't heard anything from Carmilla since she left her house yesterday and she's trying not to panic.

"Everything okay, Danny?" Dave asks as she stares hopelessly at her lab manual.

"Y-yeah, Dave. Thanks." She replies.

He nods and goes back to measuring out more solution.

She fights the urge to bolt from the classroom.

-

"I hate these things. Why can't they switch it up, you know? Like even a nice pb and j would be better than-"

"Broadchurch, it's just a fucking sandwich." Danny snaps.

Everybody at the table freezes.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Lawrence. What's your damage?" Maddie asks, glaring at her.

"I'm sorry. I'm- I'm sorry, Mads. I'm just- I don't even know." Danny mumbles, poking at her fruit cup with her spoon.

Maddie softens instantly.

"I get you." She replies, lightly nudging Danny's leg with her foot.

Danny sighs and checks her phone again.

Nothing.

She glances over at Laura, who's staring down at her green beans with a worried expression. She bites back the words at the back of her throat, wanting desperately to ask Laura if she's heard from Carmilla but not wanting to draw attention to the situation.

She feels Perry's hand slide onto her knee and squeeze.

She looks over at her. Perry smiles tightly and mouths: 'it's okay.'

Danny nods but her insides are squirming.

-

"What's really going on?" Perry asks as Danny skates over to her slowly.

"It's complicated." Danny replies, silently looking out over the ice. Practice ended ten minutes ago and the other girls have cleared the ice and gone back to the locker room.

"Complicated meaning you can't tell me?" Perry asks, leaning against the boards.

"Yes."

"Does it involve Carmilla?"

"Yes. But it's not relationship stuff it's...well, it's not my story to tell." Danny replies.

Perry watches her face carefully for a few moments before nodding.

"Okay." She says. She drapes her arm over Danny's shoulder. "Okay."

She chooses not to comment on the tears forming in Danny's eyes.

-

Cold hands slide under her shirt, jarring her awake. Her eyes snap open.

"Carm?" She mumbles out sleepily.

Carmilla doesn't answer. She presses her face into Danny's shoulder and breathes out raggedly. Danny winds her arms around Carmilla's body and pulls her close. Carmilla's entire body is trembling and the grip she has on Danny's back is tight.

"It's okay." Danny whispers against the top of her head.

"Say it?" Carmilla asks, her voice muffled by Danny's shirt.

"I love you." Danny whispers. "I love you so much."

She repeats it over and over again until Carmilla finally falls asleep.

 

 

_9th._

 

Carmilla bites down on Danny's shoulder as Danny's fingers curl inside of her.

Danny kisses her head and tightens the grip she has on Carmilla's side. Carmilla's nails dig into the fabric of Danny's shirt and she tries not to moan. They're crammed into the library storage closet during 6th period after Carmilla spent most of the day jumping at any loud noise. Danny had gently tugged her into the closet and immediately started unbuttoning Carmilla's pants.

"Jesus." Carmilla hisses out as Danny's fingers speed up.

Danny kisses her again and again.

Carmilla falls apart with her fingers tangled in Danny's hair and her mouth pressed desperately against Danny's.

 

 

_11th._

 

Danny's back slams into the boards as one of the Greenville defensemen shoves her. She shoves back and breaks away, growling under her breath as the Greenville center steals the puck. 

They're tied 2-2 with only a few minutes remaining.

Elsie slams into the center, knocking the puck loose and Danny quickly retrieves it. She maneuvers around another of the defensemen and skates quickly toward the Greenville goal. She fakes a shot, making the goalie move to the left and instead passes the puck over to Maddie. Maddie shoots into the empty space of the net and the goal siren goes off.

"YES!" Danny yelps, skating over to hug Maddie.

"Brilliant fake, Cap." Maddie says.

"Are you kidding? Killer shot, Mads!" Danny replies.

They skate back over to the bench and watch the final minute expire without incident. Everybody swarms Perry and Danny waits until everyone clears out before draping her arm over Perry's shoulders. Perry lifts her mask up.

"That was a close one." Perry says.

"Yeah, Jess and Ali need to work on clearing out the crease faster. That second goal you got swarmed." Danny replies.

"I couldn't even see the puck." Perry whines as they head to the locker room.

"We'll work on it next practice." Danny says, scanning the bleachers for Carmilla but not finding her.

-

Her car door opening causes Danny to jump.

"You scared the shit out of me!" Danny says, pressing her hand to her chest. Carmilla smiles.

"Sorry, Gingersnap." She says.

"Where did you go? I looked for you." Danny asks.

"My mom called so I ducked into the lobby to talk to her." Carmilla replies. Danny stiffens.

"What did she want?" Danny asks.

"I have to be home early again tonight." Carmilla says, looking down at the tear in her jeans.

"Is something going on that you're not telling me?" Danny whispers.

Carmilla looks up. She stares at Danny's face, her eyes travelling over every feature slowly.

"She's just really stressed out." Carmilla admits.

"And she's taking it out on you?" Danny asks. Carmilla nods.

"I think she knows I'm seeing someone. I don't think she knows that it's you, though." Carmilla says. Danny reaches out and tangles their fingers together.

"How can you tell?" Danny asks.

"She keeps ranting about how I'm worthless and how I might think that people care about me but they don't." She replies bitterly. Danny's jaw tenses.

"That's not true." Danny seethes out.

"I know." Carmilla replies, squeezing Danny's hand. "Whenever she says things like that I try to remind myself of you. But sometimes..."

"Sometimes?" Danny prompts, stroking her thumb across Carmilla's wrist.

"It's just hard to believe after you spend your whole life hearing that you mean nothing." Carmilla admits, looking down at their hands.

Danny tugs on Carmilla's hand until she's leaned against Danny's shoulder. She kisses the top of Carmilla's head.

"You mean everything to me." Danny whispers.

Carmilla squeezes her hand.

 

 

_13th._

 

"Okay, so, ionic bonds are the transfer of electrons and covalent bonds are the sharing of electrons?" Danny asks.

"Yes. I think. Yes." Carmilla replies, reading through a paragraph in their textbook.

Danny sighs and drops her head to Carmilla's lap. Carmilla laughs and runs her hands through Danny's hair.

"Tired?" She asks. Danny groans.

"So tired." Danny replies, closing her eyes. "That feels nice."

Carmilla laughs and continues running her fingers through Danny's hair. Danny hums.

"If you had a tail, I bet it'd be wagging right now." Carmilla teases. Danny frowns.

"Whatever." She grumbles.

Carmilla leans down and kisses her on the forehead.

"Don't pout." She mumbles against Danny's head.

She leans down and kisses Danny once, twice, three times before pulling back. Danny smiles.

"You're vibrating." Danny says, cracking open one eye. Carmilla groans and digs her phone out of her pocket and out from under Danny's head.

"Hello. Yes, mother-"

Danny tenses.

"-no, but you said- I thought that- we're not FINISHED! Okay! Okay, okay fine. Cal- calm down. Fine, I'm leaving now."

She hangs up the phone and angrily drops it to the floor. Danny doesn't move from Carmilla's lap.

"What happened?" She whispers.

"I have to go." Carmilla says.

"Okay. Let me walk you out?" Danny asks, sitting up.

"Please do." Carmilla replies.

Danny helps her quietly gather her things and takes her hand. She leads her upstairs and after a quick goodbye to Danny's parents, walks her out to her car. Carmilla doesn't let go of Danny's hand once.

"Call me if you need anything." Danny says, holding Carmilla's car door open for her.

Carmilla turns and kisses her, hard.

"I will." She whispers.

She turns and climbs into her car. Danny lets go of the door and Carmilla closes it. With one last look, Carmilla backs out of her driveway and heads down the road.

Danny stays outside until the panic in her chest calms down.

 

 

_14th._

 

"Is it supposed to be that color? Is that blue?" Carmilla asks, leaning closer to the test tube Danny's holding up.

"I don't know, Carmilla, I'm colorblind remember? You're supposed to tell me." She replies, rolling her eyes. Carmilla laughs.

"Right. Sorry, Beanpole." Carmilla says.

"Hey, Betty!" Danny calls out. Betty looks up from her lab station. "What color is this?"

Betty narrows her eyes at the test tube in Danny's hand.

"Teal. You need more Iron." She replies. Danny turns to look at Carmilla.

"Thanks, Princess." Carmilla calls back. Betty shrugs and goes back to her work.

"Damn." Danny mutters, placing the test tube back on the rack and reaching for the Iron powder.

Carmilla groans and drops her head to the counter. Danny watches her out of the corner of her eye.

"Rough night?" She asks.

"Didn't sleep well." Carmilla replies.

Danny stirs the test tube and then nudges Carmilla with her elbow. Carmilla lifts her head up.

"Blue." She says. Danny nods. "I thought about coming to stay with you but..." She trails off.

"It's okay." Danny whispers.

Carmilla watches her scribble down their results into her lab manual.

"Danny?"

"Hmm?" She stops writing and looks up.

"I- never mind." Carmilla says, shaking her head.

"What is it?" Danny asks.

"It's nothing, I remembered the answer to what I was going to ask." Carmilla dismisses, looking down at her own lab manual.

"Okay." Danny replies.

But she can tell Carmilla's lying.

-

"Guess what!" Julie exclaims, sliding down into her seat at the lunch table.

"You-"

"Shut up, Maddie, you already know so you aren't allowed to guess." Julie interrupts. Maddie rolls her eyes.

"What, Jules?" Perry asks.

"I got into Michigan!" Julie announces, bouncing in her seat. LaFontaine chokes on their potato chip.

"That's so awesome!" Laura says.

"Congrats!" Danny says, grinning.

LaF finally stops coughing and gives Julie a thumbs up while Perry pats their back.

"Thanks guys! I'm so excited." Julie replies, beaming.

"How did you hear back so fast?" Laura asks.

"Miss Overachiever applied for early admissions." Maddie says, poking Julie's cheek. Julie swats her hand away.

"You should have too."

"But then I would have had to take the SAT over Thanksgiving break and hell no to that plan." Maddie replies, rolling her eyes.

"You could have taken it with me." Julie says, shoving at Maddie's shoulder.

"Yeah, well. I'll hear back in late April like all the normal people." Maddie teases. Julie grins.

Perry nudges Danny under the table. She looks over and Perry raises her eyebrows in a silent 'are you seeing this?'

Danny grins.

 

 

_17th._

 

"Watch your backs, girls! We're playing Centreville again tomorrow and you remember how nasty they got last time!" Danny calls out.

"Yeah boss, Maddie might need a bodyguard!" Elsie jokes.

"Stop calling me that!" Danny calls back, rolling her eyes. "Foster, McGuire, you guys need to watch Perry. Don't let her get to crowded. If she can't cover a rebound, make sure you clear it out of the crease." 

She skates back to Perry's end as Perry flips her mask up.

"You got any plans after practice?" Perry asks, grabbing for her water bottle.

"I've got a date with Carm." Danny replies, smiling.

"A date? Really?" Perry asks. Danny nods.

"Yeah, she's been kind of...well, she's been dealing with a lot of stress so we're going to go to that fancy coffee place downtown. The one with the live music? It'll be nice." She replies.

"You're such a charmer." Perry teases, poking her with her goalie stick.

Danny rolls her eyes and slaps Perry's stick away.

"Don't let it get around."

Perry laughs.

"Oh, please. The whole school knows you're a massive puppy dog." She jokes.

"Whatever." Danny grumbles. But she's smiling.

-

"This place is nice." Carmilla says, sliding into the booth next to Danny.

"Yeah, it's cozy." Danny replies, draping her arm over Carmilla's shoulder. Carmilla presses into her side more.

"And out of the way." Carmilla says, kissing Danny on the cheek.

"No stress." Danny replies, squeezing Carmilla closer.

She reaches for her coffee cup but Carmilla casually takes it out of her hand before she can take a sip.

"No burning your tongue. Wait a few minutes that thing is scalding." She says, setting the cup back on the table.

Danny laughs. Carmilla grins at her and rests her hand on Danny's thigh.

"Do you know what band is supposed to be playing?" She asks. Danny shakes her head.

"Some jazz quartet, I think." Danny replies.

"I like jazz." Carmilla says, her eyes lighting up. Danny smiles at her.

"I know. I saw those records of yours." She replies.

"Oh yeah?" Carmilla teases, squeezing Danny's leg under the table.

"Yep."

"Is that why you wanted to bring me here? To score brownie points?"

"That depends," Danny muses, "do I get actual brownies out of it?"

Carmilla rolls her eyes and lightly shoves at her face.

"Idiot." She mumbles, but she's smiling.

" _Your_ idiot." Danny corrects.

Carmilla beams at her.

 

 

_18th._

 

"Watch the crease!" Danny yells as one of the Centreville girls comes dangerously close to catching the rebound of Perry's block.

Elsie spins around and sends the puck flying back down toward center ice. They were up 3-0 once again at the start of the third period. All three goals belonged to Danny and she was feeling pretty proud of herself. She races over to the puck and dodges one of the Centreville wingers before turning to look for Maddie for the pass. 

Right as she turns her head something heavy slams into her legs and she sees the ice rushing up to meet her before everything-

-goes dark.

-

"Is she going to be okay? She's been out for like a half hour!"

"She's stable, she just hit her head pretty hard. She's going to need to go to the hospital to make sure nothing is fractured."

"Shouldn't we call an ambulance?"

"I am a paramedic."

"Oh. Right. Sorry."

"I called her parents. Her dad's going to come and pick her up."

"Where's Coach?"

"Outside keeping the mob from breaking down the door to see Danny."

"Aw, jeez."

Danny groans and blinks her eyes open. She's lying on her back on the bench in the middle of the locker room with Perry and Elsie standing over her face and the medic, Sarah, kneeling by her legs.

"Take it easy, Lawrence." Sarah says.

Danny tries to sit up but Perry stops her.

"Did you seriously not just hear what she said?" Perry asks.

"Sorry." Danny mutters, dropping back down to the bench. "What happened?"

"One of the Centreville defensemen like, bulldozed you." Elsie explains.

"Seriously?" Danny asks. Perry and Elsie both nod.

She can hear shouting come from the other side of the locker room door.

"What's going on out there?" She asks.

"You fan club wants to check on you." Sarah teases.

"Coach won't let anyone in to see you." Perry explains.

"I know why you're here-"

"-I'm the mom." Perry finishes, rolling her eyes. Danny nods.

"But why are you here?" Danny asks, pointing up at Elsie.

"Just let us in!" She hears Maddie's muffled voice interrupt as the shouting gets closer.

"I'm your alternate captain, duh." Elsie says.

"No, it's because you got suspended for sucker punching Centreville's captain." Perry says.

Danny stares open mouthed at Elsie.

"You did what?" She asks.

"I don't understand why you won't let us at least check on her!" Laura's voice sounds from outside the room. The yelling is getting louder.

"First face off after they got you off the ice, Elsie drops her gloves and KO's Freeman. Like, seriously, right in the jaw." Perry explains.

"Elsie!"

"What? You really think I was gonna let them get away with that? Mads is a senior she can't afford to be benched, I can." Elsie says.

Danny shakes her head.

"Coach Ward, please!" Julie calls as someone thumps against the door.

"I cannot believe you." Danny says, but she's grinning. "Seriously, the jaw?"

"Eh." Elsie shrugs.

"SHE'S MY FREAKIN' GIRLFRIEND WILL YOU JUST LET ME BACK THERE!" Carmilla's voice calls out over the commotion right outside the door.

A sudden hush descends on the crowd outside and the silence is deafening. Danny blinks a few times as Elsie's eyes widen. 

"Shit." Perry mutters.

"Did you just curse?" Elsie asks, turning to look at Perry with her eyes still the size of saucers.

"Shut up." Perry and Danny say at the same time.

 

 

_19th._

 

"Are you sure you're okay, baby?" Carmilla asks, putting her hair up into a messy bun as she pads barefoot across Danny's bedroom.

"I'm fine." Danny replies, shifting under the blankets. "The doctor said everything was clear, I just have a concussion so I have to take it easy for a few days."

Carmilla, having changed out of her clothes and into one of Danny's shirts after sneaking in, climbs into Danny's bed. She settles back against the pillows and tugs on Danny's arm until she's laying on her chest. She runs her fingers through Danny's hair.

"I was so worried about you. You just...dropped. And then you weren't moving and..." She trails off. Danny squeezes her thigh.

"I'm okay." Danny whispers.

"And then Coach Ward wouldn't let anybody back there and I panicked and I just blurted it out and now everybody knows and you should have seen the look on Laura's face." Carmilla rambles. 

"Shh. It's okay." Danny reassures her. Gently tracing her fingers against Carmilla's thigh.

"She looked so hurt." Carmilla whispers.

"She'll be okay." Danny replies.

"She's my best friend, I should have told her." Carmilla says, panicking.

Danny rolls over and gently traces her finger down Carmilla's cheek.

"You weren't ready for anybody to know. It's okay. She's going to understand." Danny promises.

Carmilla nods before leaning down and kissing Danny gently on the lips.

"Okay." She mumbles against Danny's mouth.

-

Danny wakes up to Carmilla climbing over her body.

"Babe what are you- mmph." She gets interrupted as Carmilla's stomach drags over her mouth. 

"Sorry, sorry, sorry. I need my phone." Carmilla says, grabbing her phone from the floor and rolling back over to her side of the bed.

"What time is it?" Danny asks, blinking.

"6:30. I gotta go." Carmilla says, rolling out of bed.

Danny watches as she strips off Danny's shirt she slept in and pulls back on her sweater. She redresses quickly and tugs on her shoes and jacket and then grabs her keys. She rushes over to the side of the bed and leans in, kissing Danny quickly three times on the mouth and then pulling away.

"I'll call you later, okay?" Carmilla whispers as she opens Danny's bedroom door.

"Okay." Danny whispers back.

Carmilla winks at her and then she's gone.

 

 

_21st._

 

She's walking down the hall, headed to her Physics class, when suddenly someone grabs her elbow and yanks her into the girls bathroom.

Laura.

She shoves her, hard, in the middle of her stomach into the larger handicapped bathroom on the end of the row and then pulls the door closed behind them.

"How could you!?" Laura seethes.

"How could I what?"

Laura pokes her in the stomach.

"Don't play stupid with me, Danny, you know exactly what I'm talking about!"

"How was it any of your business?" Danny asks.

"Carmilla is my best friend, Danny. My best friend! And you're...you!" Laura argues.

"And Carmilla didn't want to tell anyone!" Danny argues back.

Laura just stares at her. Her face is red and she's breathing heavily.

"Do you have any idea how terrible I felt? Finding out the way that I did?" Laura whispers. "I thought...I thought that I meant more to you guys than that."

"Laura, don't do that. It's not like that." Danny whispers back.

Laura takes a deep breath and stares up at the ceiling.

"How did I not notice?" She whispers.

"We were really careful. It's not a big deal-"

"Not a big deal! Danny, Carmilla has never been in a relationship! She's never had feelings for anyone! Ever! And yet she obviously cares about you enough to date you and yet I didn't notice that?" Laura argues, her eyes tearing up.

"You know how she is." Danny whispers, reaching out and placing her hand on Laura's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Laura whispers, gripping Danny's hand where it rests.

"It's okay. You kind of got blindsided." Danny says.

"I should have-"

"Don't. Don't be like that, Laura."

Laura sighs.

"I'm happy for guys, I am. I'm just...I just need to process." Laura says.

"So you manhandle me into the bathroom?" Danny asks.

"I wasn't thinking. I was just mad and I don't even know why. It's not my business I just- I don't know. I'm sorry." Laura says, miserably.

"It's okay, just. Go easy on her, okay? She has her reasons for not talking about things." Danny says, tugging Laura forward into a hug.

"I know." Laura mumbles against Danny's chest.

"Do you love her?" Laura asks, keeping her face pressed against Danny's shirt.

"Yes." Danny whispers. Laura's grip tightens.

"Good." Laura replies. "You know that she cares about you a lot, even though she won't tell you. If she's breaking her 'I don't do relationships' rule to date you then you mean a lot to her."

"I know." Danny mumbles. "I know."

-

"So, how's everybody doing?" Maddie asks, dropping down into her usual seat.

Nobody answers her.

"You guys seriously aren't mad at Danny, are you?" Julie asks, appearing next to Maddie and sitting down.

"No." Laura and LaFontaine reply in unison, both of them looking up immediately.

"Good." Julie says. Danny smiles at her.

"Why are you guys being so awkward, then?" Maddie asks.

"We're not-"

"You are." Perry interrupts Laura.

"It's nobody's business anyway." Maddie defends.

"No, I know. We know. We're just-" LaF stops, locking eyes with Laura. "Everything is cool, really."

"Good because guess what?" Maddie starts. Julie's face pales and she opens her mouth to say something but it's too late.

"Jules and I are banging."

Danny chokes on her yogurt.

-

Carmilla cackles.

"Shh! You're going to get us caught!" Danny says, shoving lightly at Carmilla's shoulder.

"She just blurted it out like that?" Carmilla asks. Danny grins and nods.

Carmilla laughs again. Danny shoves at her and Carmilla swats her hands away.

"Jesus. What did Julie do?"

"She just rolled her eyes and was like 'thanks, Maddie.'" Danny replies.

"How's Laura?" Carmilla asks, sobering up.

"She's...I think she's okay. She was mad at first that we didn't tell her but then she just kind of deflated. I think she's upset with herself for not noticing." Danny explains.

"I'll talk to her after school." Carmilla says.

She reaches out and pulls Danny down for a kiss.

"In the meantime, we still have 20 minutes..." She trails off.

Danny grins and slides her hands under Carmilla's shirt.

 

 

_25th._

 

Danny slides into her car after their hockey game. She had sat on the bench for the whole game, Coach was still worried about her concussion. They had won, though, 3-2. 

Her car door opens and Carmilla slides in.

"Hey there." Danny says.

Carmilla smiles at her, but it doesn't reach her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Danny asks. Carmilla shakes her head.

"It's nothing." She says, but Danny knows she's lying.

"Carm-"

Carmilla leans across the car and kisses her, roughly. Danny lets Carmilla shut her up, but it doesn't quell the panic rising in her chest.

"Carm-" She starts again but Carmilla kisses her again and again.

"I don't want to talk about it. I just want you to kiss me." Carmilla whispers against Danny's mouth.

Danny pulls her closer and kisses her like her life depends on it.

 

 

_28th._

 

She wakes to Carmilla's breathing against the back of her neck.

Danny rolls over to find Carmilla, wrapped up in Danny's hoodie that had been draped over the back of her desk chair. Carmilla's eyes flicker open at Danny's movement.

"What happened?" Danny asks. Carmilla shakes her head and tugs on the front of Danny's shirt.

"Apparently, I'm not good enough for anybody." Carmilla whispers.

Danny slides her arms around Carmilla's body and pulls her in close. She feels Carmilla's ragged breathing against her neck.

"You're good enough for me. You're good enough for all our friends. You're good enough for my parents." Danny whispers.

Carmilla's body trembles and Danny stays awake long after Carmilla falls asleep.

 

 

_29th._

 

Carmilla yawns again.

"You okay?" Danny asks, quietly. Carmilla nods.

"I'm okay." Carmilla mumbles back, turning back to her lab manual.

Danny nudges her gently and Carmilla smiles up at her.

But it doesn't reach her eyes.

-

"So then, I told him 'look, this project is like half of our grade you're going to have to start pulling your weight.'" LaFontaine explains.

"And what did he say?" Julie asks.

"'Uh, yeah. Like totally.' He still hasn't done shit." They explain.

Danny focuses on her pizza, her mind elsewhere.

"Danny!" Maddie suddenly shouts, waving her hand in front of Danny's face.

"Sorry." Danny mumbles, yawning.

"Everything okay, Danny?" Perry asks.

"Yeah, yeah it's fine." Danny lies.

She can't shake the feeling that she's missing something.

 

 

 

_31st._

 

1:37am.

She should be sleeping, but instead Danny's lying on her back in the middle of her bed staring up at her ceiling. She's been doing this a lot lately. Lying awake and unable to shut off her brain. She sighs and squeezes her eyes shut.

Her eyes snap back open at the sound of her door closing.

She sits up.

Carmilla's standing at the end of her bed, hands shoved into the pockets of Danny's letterman jacket and shaking from head to toe.

"Carm?" Danny whispers.

"Can I stay?" Carmilla asks, her voice hoarse.

Danny doesn't answer. Instead she tosses the blanket aside and holds out her arms. Carmilla kicks off her shoes and takes off the jacket, draping it over the back of Danny's chair before climbing into the bed. She wraps her arms around Danny's neck and Danny gently rolls her over and down onto the mattress.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Danny asks. Carmilla's grip tightens.

"I can't." Carmilla whispers.

"Do you trust me?" Danny asks.

"Of course." Carmilla replies.

"Let go and lie back." Danny instructs.

Carmilla moves her arms from around Danny's neck and resettles against Danny's mattress. Danny hovers over her tracing her eyes over Carmilla's face. Her lip is quivering and Danny can feel hurt and loneliness and despair radiating off of her in waves. Carmilla watches her apprehensively, as if she's afraid Danny is going to see into her soul and not like what she finds there. Danny leans in slowly and kisses her forehead.

"I love your mind. How intelligent you are and how you think about things." Danny whispers.

She moves down and kisses Carmilla's left eyelid and then her right.

"I love your pretty, pretty eyes. They look like sunsets when you first wake up and the sweetest honey before you fall asleep."

She traces her lips over to Carmilla's nose and kisses her there.

"I love how your nose crinkles when you laugh."

She kisses her right cheek and then her left.

"I love it when you blush."

She trails her lips to the corner of Carmilla's mouth and kisses there.

"I love your smile and I love listening to you talk."

She feels Carmilla's breathing evening out as she calms down. She moves her lips over to Carmilla's ear and kisses her.

"I love how you listen to my dumb rambles all the time."

She feels Carmilla smile at that. She moves down further and kisses Carmilla's neck.

"I love the sound of your voice."

She keeps her lips pressed to Carmilla's throat while she reaches down and slowly unbuttons Carmilla's shirt. Once it's unbuttoned, she pushes the fabric out of the way and kisses Carmilla's shoulder.

"I love how strong you are. You may think you're weak, but you're not. You're so very strong."

She hears Carmilla take a shaky breath and her hands move to Danny's arms. Danny slowly kisses her way across Carmilla's chest before pausing, lips pressed to Carmilla's skin, and whispers against her heartbeat.

"I love you."

Carmilla's hands slide up Danny's arms and underneath the collar of her shirt. She grips Danny's back.

"I love you." Danny says again, kissing her way up to Carmilla's mouth.

Carmilla's hands slide from her back over to her shoulders. Danny kisses her again and again and again before pulling back.

"I love you and I'm yours." She whispers.

This time when she kisses her, she can taste Carmilla's tears.

 


	9. April

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "He said, 'You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.'" 
> 
> \- The Velveteen Rabbit

_1st._

 

"Boss, did you study for that Physics test today?" Elsie asks, leaning against the lockers. Danny freezes.

"There is no Physics test today." Danny says. "And stop calling me that."

"Dude, yes there is. Mr. Roberts sent out an e-mail last night saying he was giving us an evaluation test today to see how much we've learned so far." Elsie replies, her eyes widening. "Don't tell me you didn't get it?"

Danny closes her locker with a groan.

"Fuck. I'm fucked. I'll have to study during Latin. Did he say what it was on?" She asks. Elsie looks down at her phone.

"Hang on let me pull it up."

Danny waits impatiently as Elsie scrolls through her phone.

"Oh! Yeah, here it is. He says it's on chapters You Should Check A Calender, Dumbass." Elsie replies without looking up.

Realization dawns on Danny's face as Elsie starts grinning.

"You fucking-"

"Later boss! Happy April Fools Day!" Elsie calls out, dodging under Danny's attempted karate chop and sprinting down the hallway.

"Stop calling me that!" Danny yells after her, shaking her head. "Fucking jerk." She mumbles.

-

"You okay?" Danny mumbles, leaning against the counter next to Carmilla.

Carmilla shifts so she's leaning into Danny's side, not taking her eyes off of the solution in front of her. She nods.

"You gonna come to the game tonight?" Danny asks, gently taking the beaker with the extra solution out of Carmilla's hand as she moves the test tube over to the bunsen burner.

"Of course I am." Carmilla replies, glancing over at Danny with a smile.

Danny smiles back. She discreetly slides her hand across Carmilla's lower back before leaning in close to her ear.

"Best girlfriend ever." She whispers. Carmilla smiles one of her nose-crinkling smiles.

"You should look in a mirror because that's you." She whispers back.

Danny laughs and shakes her head.

-

"If one more person even ATTEMPTS to pull an April Fools joke on me whoever it is is going to get decked in the face." Maddie grumbles, dropping into her chair.

Danny looks up from her book. A giggling Julie sits down between Maddie and Laura.

"I thought it was funny." Julie says. Maddie rolls her eyes.

"It was not. At all." Maddie growls.

"Who pulled a prank on you?" LaFontaine asks.

"Friggin' Toby told me Coach was looking for me so I walked all the way down to the rink and there was a note on the door that said 'April Fools!' Little shit." Maddies replies, glaring at her sandwich.

"That is kind of funny." Laura says, smiling. Maddie glares at her and Laura slides down in her chair. "Or not."

"What are you reading?" Julie asks, pointing at Danny's book.

" _The Westing Game_. Carmilla lent it to me." Danny replies. Laura chokes on her cookie.

"She lent you one of her books?" She asks. Danny raises an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"That's a big deal. She never lets anyone touch her books." Laura says.

"Uh, Laura...it's probably because Danny's touching the book between her-"

"Maddie!" Perry interjects.

"-ears. I was going to say ears. You know, Danny totally tickles her brain." Maddie says, winking at Danny who rolls her eyes.

Laura blushes.

"No, it's just...oh, never mind." Laura says, shoving the other half of her cookie into her mouth.

Danny kicks Maddie under the table and smirks.

-

Danny adjusts the strap of her equipment bag on her shoulder and continues across the parking lot. They had just defeated Eastwood 2-1 thanks to her last minute goal. She spots Carmilla leaning against her car and grins.

"Hey there." Danny calls out.

"Hey yourself, Hot Stuff." Carmilla calls back as Danny approaches. 

"Come here." Danny says, dropping her bag and holding out her arms.

Carmilla pushes off from Danny's car and steps into her embrace. She rests her forehead against Danny's shoulder and sighs.

"Can you stay?" Danny whispers. Carmilla shakes her head no.

Danny gently turns so she can lean back against her car. Carmilla leans against her more.

"How are you feeling?" Danny mumbles, pressing her lips to the top of Carmilla's head.

"Tired and lousy." Carmilla mumbles back against Danny's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Danny whispers. Carmilla shakes her head.

"It's not your fault." Carmilla replies, gently biting down on Danny's shoulder. Danny squeezes her tighter.

"What time do you need to head home?" Danny asks.

Carmilla smooths her hands up and down Danny's back.

"We have time." She replies.

Danny leans down and kisses her.

 

 

_2nd._

 

Danny stretches out in her bed as Carmilla drapes her arm over her side.

"This is nice." Carmilla mumbles, pressing herself against Danny's back.

"You always think it's nice when you're big spoon." Danny replies, keeping her eyes closed. She feels Carmilla laughing.

"I can't help it. You're cuddly." Carmilla replies. "Besides, I don't hear you complaining."

Danny gently trails her fingers down Carmilla's arm.

"I'm definitely not complaining." She whispers.

Carmilla presses a soft kiss to the back of Danny's neck.

"It's nice to just lay here with you, though. Not having to worry about anything." Carmilla says. Danny smiles.

"I like having you here." Danny says.

"My mom's been..." Carmilla trails off as Danny stiffens, pausing her fingers.

"Yeah?"

"Stressed out. She's been yelling a lot more." Carmilla replies. Danny resumes stroking Carmilla's arm.

"I'm sorry." Danny whispers.

"It's not your fault." Carmilla mumbles back, kissing the back of Danny's neck again.

"Still-"

"I know." Carmilla interrupts.

She yawns and rests her forehead against Danny's back. Danny lightly taps her arm.

"Take a nap, Carm." She whispers.

Carmilla makes a grumbling sound and Danny laughs.

"I'll wake you up in time for dinner, I promise." She whispers. Carmilla yawns again.

"Okay, fine." She whispers.

Danny smiles and listens as Carmilla's breathing evens out. 

 

 

_4th._

 

"Jesus." Danny breathes out as Carmilla bites down on her neck.

"Shhhh." Carmilla teases, sliding her hands under Danny's shirt and dragging her nails down her sides.

Danny grips the shelf of the storage closet tighter as Carmilla kisses her way up to Danny's ear. She reaches out and tugs at Danny's wrists.

"Danny." She whines, her playful demeanor suddenly sobering up into something else.

Danny immediately winds her arms around Carmilla's waist and pulls her in closer. Carmilla's arms slide up Danny's and she grips the back of her neck as Danny reaches between them and unbuttons Carmilla's pants. Carmilla's nails dig into Danny's skin as Danny's fingers press inside of her.

Minutes later, on the edge of falling apart, Carmilla's hands slide from the back of Danny's neck up to her jaw and she tilts Danny's face down. Their eyes lock, and for a moment Danny is overwhelmed by the intensity of Carmilla's stare. But then, Carmilla is crashing over the edge of release and her eyes involuntarily squeeze shut. Her head falls back and Danny leans in, kissing at her throat until she relaxes.

"What was that?" Danny whispers as Carmilla's breathing returns to normal.

"I don't know." Carmilla whispers back, tracing her fingers along Danny's jaw. "I just needed-" She sighs.

"It's okay." Danny mumbles, kissing her. "It's okay."

She doesn't miss the way Carmilla's lips tremble against hers.

 

 

_5th._

 

"Gina, watch where you're going!" Danny calls out as Gina nearly slams into Maddie.

She turns back to Perry.

"I can't, I'm meeting Carm at our coffee place to finish that lab report." She says.

"Study date?" Perry teases. Danny rolls her eyes.

"No. It's strictly business. She doesn't have a lot of time. She has to be home early." Danny replies.

Perry eyes her for a moment.

"Her mom..." Perry trails off.

"What about her?" Danny asks, wincing as Ali's shot goes completely wide.

"She's kind of...well, she's not very nice is she?" Perry asks.

"Not at all." Danny replies.

"Do you- I mean, is there something going on there?"

Danny turns back to face Perry, who's watching her with a concerned expression.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, is that what you can't tell me? Your whole 'it's not my story to tell' bit. Is it about Carmilla's mom?" Perry asks.

Danny sighs and nods.

"You know Laura's dad-"

"I know." Danny interrupts. 

"Does Laura-"

"I don't know how much she knows. Carmilla won't talk about it."

Perry leans back against the goal.

"If she ever needs anything...you can call me, you know that right?" She says.

Danny stares at her for a few moments.

"I know, Per. I know."

-

"Does this look right to you?" Carmilla asks, sliding her lab manual across the table to Danny. Danny reads over the equation.

"Yeah. Yeah, it does." She replies. Carmilla grins.

"Thank god. Almost done." Carmilla says.

Danny leans back in her chair and reaches for her coffee. She feels Carmilla's leg press against hers under the table. She smiles.

"Can I ask you something?" Danny says, the fluttering in her chest suddenly reemerging. 

"Of course, babe." Carmilla replies, not looking up from her last question.

"What do you think about prom?"

"I think it's stupid, why?" Carmilla replies.

"So...you wouldn't want to go then?" Danny asks. Carmilla pauses and looks up.

"Do you want to go?" She asks.

"I don't know, I mean, kind of. But also, not really." Danny admits.

"Well, it's not until the end of May so we have plenty of time to make up our minds." Carmilla says, reaching out and nudging Danny's arm. "And speaking of May..."

"What?"

"Isn't your birthday the 1st?" Carmilla asks, waggling her eyebrows. Danny laughs.

"Yeah."

"Mmm, good to know." Carmilla says, winking.

Danny laughs.

 

 

_6th._

 

Danny makes her way across the ballfield. She can see Carmilla waiting on the bleachers up ahead. She hops the gate and climbs the stairs to their usual row.

"Hey." Carmilla whispers.

Danny leans down and kisses her before settling down next to her.

"Why'd you want to meet-"

"I got into Michigan." Danny interrupts.

Carmilla grins and slides her arm around Danny's shoulders.

"Baby, that's great!" She says. Danny shakes her head.

"It's not where I want to go."

"I know. You want to go to Rogers in DC. So do I." Carmilla says.

"They have the best astronautical engineering program in the country." Danny says. Carmilla laughs.

"I know, baby. And the best art program."

"Hey, have you-"

"No." Carmilla interrupts. "I haven't heard back from anyone. Not even the grant people."

"Well, it's only the start of April. I'm sure you'll hear something in the next few weeks." Danny says, leaning her head onto Carmilla's shoulder.

Carmilla kisses the side of her head.

"Yeah." She breathes out.

"We'll get out of here. We will." Danny says.

Carmilla's grip on her shoulder tightens and she presses her mouth to Danny's head.

 

 

_8th._

 

"Yes!" Danny cheers as Maddie scores on the Davidson goalie. 

It's the last game before playoffs start and they're minutes away from ending the regular season undefeated, up 3-1 on Davidson.

Maddie skates over and hip checks her.

"Dude, did you see that? Right between her pads!" Maddie exclaims.

"Good job, Mads!" Danny replies, bumping her fist on Maddie's helmet as they skate over to the bench.

"Wicked shot, bro!" Elsie says, bumping into the two of them from behind.

Danny mumbles something under her breath about her dislike for the term 'bro' and Maddie elbows her.

They take their seats on the bench and watch Emily and the second line finish out the remaining minutes. The buzzer sounds and the rest of the team hops the bench and swarms Perry.

"Undefeated season!" Julie yells, crashing into Perry.

Gina, Ali and Jess all start jumping up and down behind Perry's net.

"Don't do that, you'll snap your ankles!" Danny yells.

"Oh, they're fine, boss." Elsie says, nudging Danny's butt with her stick.

"Stop calling me that." Danny says, grinning as she swats Elsie back with her own stick.

"GET OFF!" Perry yells from the ice as Julie, Maddie and Toby all flop down on top of her.

Danny throws her head back laughing. A flash from somewhere to her left catches her attention and she turns, still laughing, and catches Carmilla standing next to Coach Ward with her camera.

She winks right as Carmilla snaps another picture.

-

She paces the parking lot beside of her car and checks her phone again.

No sign of Carmilla.

She sighs and climbs into her car. She'd been waiting for almost an hour after the game for Carmilla but her girlfriend hadn't shown up. She sighs again and starts the car.

She tries desperately to stop the panic from rising in her chest the entire drive home.

 

 

_9th._

 

She wakes up with a start.

Danny feels something warm pressed against her back and she rolls over. Carmilla's curled up into a ball, her hands clenching the blanket and her body trembling.

"Carm?" She whispers, reaching out and lightly griping Carmilla's arm.

Carmilla jerks violently and snaps awake with a gasp.

"Hey, easy. Easy. It's just me." Danny whispers.

Carmilla relaxes and drops her head back down to Danny's pillow.

"Sorry." She mumbles.

"Don't be. What happened?" Danny asks gently.

Carmilla shakes her head.

"Okay." Danny whispers, gathering Carmilla into her arms. "Okay. It's okay."

Carmilla's grip shifts from the blanket to the front of Danny's shirt.

"What time did you get in?" Danny asks, gently rubbing Carmilla's back.

"Just after 2." Carmilla replies, her voice hoarse.

"Okay." Danny says, kissing the top of her head.

"I'm sorry I couldn't see you after your game." Carmilla whispers. Danny grips her tighter.

"Don't worry about that." She replies.

"I wanted to see you."

"I know. It's okay."

Danny can feel a wetness leaking onto her shirt and she knows Carmilla's crying.

"Go to sleep, babe." She whispers against the top of Carmilla's head.

It takes a long time for Carmilla's eyes to close, and Danny doesn't sleep at all.

 

 

_11th._

 

"Can you hand me the-"

"Here you go."

"Thanks."

Carmilla takes the bottle out of Danny's hand and adds a few drops to their solution. She screws the lid back on and hands it back to Danny. She yawns.

"You okay?" Danny asks.

"I'm fine." Carmilla replies, smiling.

Danny watches her as she carefully mixes the solution before placing it on the ringstand.

"Can you-"

Danny's already flipping on the gas and lighting a match.

"Thanks."

Danny nods and shakes out the match as the burner lights.

"How long-"

"3 minutes." Danny replies.

Carmilla leans against the counter with a sigh. Danny reaches over and rubs her back. Carmilla groans.

"You're going to put me to sleep doing that." She mumbles. Danny smiles.

"You look like you need it." Danny replies, suddenly serious. Carmilla swallows.

"Yeah. Yeah, I do."

Danny tries to ignore the weight settling in her chest.

-

"Hey, have you heard anything from Rogers yet?" Perry asks as Danny drops down into the seat next to her.

"No. You?" She replies.

"Nada." Perry says, sighing.

"You worried?"

"A little. You?"

"A lotta."

Perry smiles at her.

"LaFontaine says it's probably a good thing we haven't heard back yet. They said colleges send out the rejections first." She says as Danny reaches for her juice.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"You stressing?" Laura asks, sliding into her seat and nodding at Danny's bottle of grape juice. Danny always drank juice when she was stressed.

"A little." Danny replies.

"A lotta." Perry teases.

Danny laughs.

"Don't sweat it, pup, you'll get your acceptance letter soon." Maddie says as she and Julie take their seats.

"It's not just me I'm worried about." Danny admits.

"Carm still hasn't heard anything either." Laura explains.

"I'm telling you guys, this is good. They send out the rejections first." LaFontaine interjects, sitting down beside of Perry.

"They're right." Julie says, nodding over at LaF.

"Fucking turkey sandwiches." Maddie mumbles.

Danny and Perry both kick her under the table as Laura groans.

-

"Hey." Carmilla says, opening to the door to the art room.

"Still working on that secret project of yours?" Danny asks.

"Yes. But it's close to being done." Carmilla replies.

"So..."

"You still can't see it." 

Danny groans and leans against a table. Carmilla smirks at her before pulling her down into a kiss.

"You're cute." She mumbles against Danny's lips.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. But can you keep quiet?"

Before Danny can ask what she means, Carmilla's undoing her belt and jeans and sliding her hand down the front of them. She moans. Carmilla laughs against her mouth and slowly starts moving her fingers against her.

"Pretty sure that's the opposite of quiet." Carmilla whispers.

"Pretty sure you're trying to kill me." Danny whispers back, biting down on Carmilla's lip.

"Pretty sure you don't care." Carmilla mumbles back, pressing her fingers against Danny harder.

"Pretty sure I-" 

She cuts herself off with a low growl as Carmilla's fingers press inside of her.

Carmilla smirks.

 

 

_12th._

 

"Playoffs are next week, boss. You think we're ready?" Elsie asks, skating over to Danny after their routine passing drills.

"We will be if you stop calling me that." Danny replies. Elsie laughs.

"For real. We're playing McKinley first and they're pretty good. Their goalie is a machine."

"Ours is better." Danny replies, nodding over in Perry's direction.

They watch as Perry makes insane save after insane save. Elsie turns to Danny after a moment.

"How are things with you and Karnstein?"

Danny smiles.

"They're good. She's great." She replies.

"That's good. I think you're good for each other. Plus, you guys are kind of like a power couple now." Elsie says, winking at her.

"What? No way." Danny says.

"Yes way. Are you kidding? You're the captain of the hockey team and a total dreamboat and Carmilla is the broody mysterious hot girl. Total babes." Elsie says.

Danny shakes her head and elbows her.

"No way." Danny repeats.

Elsie just laughs.

"Whatever you say, boss."

"Stop calling me that."

-

"You ready to go?" Danny asks, closing the locker room door behind her.

Carmilla pushes off from the wall she's leaning against.

"Yes." She replies, smiling.

They walk out to Danny's car in silence, holding hands until they get to the car. Carmilla climbs in while Danny loads her bag into her trunk. As she's climbing into the driver's side she catches Carmilla looking into her backseat.

Before Carmilla can even open her mouth, Danny’s reaching into her backseat.

She grabs her hoodie and drops it onto Carmilla’s head. The fabric shakes and Danny can hear Carmilla’s muffled laughter. Carmilla pulls the hoodie off of her head with a grin.

"How’d you know that’s what I was going to ask for?"

"Carm, every single time you get in my car you check my backseat. If there’s a hoodie or a flannel back there, you take it. Every single time you sneak into my house at night, you take one of my shirts and you sleep in it. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn’t notice that?" Danny teases.

Carmilla laughs and tugs the hoodie on over her shirt. The sleeves are too long, in fact, the entire hoodie is simply ‘too long’ on her. She grins.

"I can’t help the fact that your clothes are more comfortable than mine." Carmilla says.

"Oh? Is that why you take them?" Danny asks, quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes." Carmilla replies. "Well, that and they smell like you."

Danny grins at her.

"You're kinda cute sometimes." She says, starting her car. Carmilla punches her on the arm.

"Only sometimes?"

"Yeah, other times you're sexy as hell." Danny replies, winking.

Carmilla laughs as Danny pulls out of the parking lot.

"Charming." She teases. Danny reaches over and laces her fingers through Carmilla's.

"Only with you."

The comfortable silence they drive home in is broken when Danny pulls onto Carmilla's street.

"Is that-"

"Shit. She wasn't supposed to be home until late." Carmilla panics, letting go of Danny's hand.

Danny pulls over a few houses away from Carmilla's.

"Call me if-"

"I will. I promise."

"Be careful."

Carmilla nods and kisses her, hard, before opening her door and jumping out.

Danny watches her walk away, the too-big hoodie making her look smaller than she is. The tightness in her chest is almost unbearable.

 

 

_13th._

 

The test tube slips out of her grip and cracks against the counter.

Danny sighs and scrubs at her face with her hands.

Betty shoots her a concerned look from across the room as Mrs. Vector appears at her elbow.

"You alright, Lawrence?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm just- headache. I have a headache." She lies.

Mrs. Vector watches her for a few more moments before nodding and walking away.

"Where's Karnstein?" Betty asks, handing her a new test tube.

"She's sick." Danny lies.

Betty bumps her arm. 

"If you need any help, Dave and I are almost finished we wouldn't mind walking you through it." She offers. Danny smiles at her.

"That'd be cool."

"You can take Carmilla my notes too, if you want."

Danny nods.

"You're a peach, Princess." She replies.

Betty laughs and shakes her head.

Danny tries to keep the tightness in her chest from overwhelming her.

-

"Hey."

Danny freezes from digging her keys out of her pocket and looks up.

Laura's leaned against her Camero, obviously waiting on her.

"Hey." She replies, pulling out her keys and approaching Laura.

"We should talk." Laura says. Danny nods and gestures to her car.

She unlocks the doors and slides into the driver's side while Laura slides into the passenger's. They sit in silence for a few moments before Danny speaks.

"How much do you know?"

"Just that her mother is a control freak. But...I know there's something else going on. Every time she starts to tell me something though...she clams up." Laura replies.

"She's not allowed to talk about things." Danny whispers.

"Jesus." Laura mutters. "Is she-"

"Not physically. But honestly I really think it's just a matter of time." Danny says. Laura shakes her head.

"My dad-"

"I know. But you can't get him involved. That has to be Carmilla's decision and her mom is- well, she's a lawyer." Danny interrupts.

"Do you really think-"

"You haven't seen her." Danny cuts her off.

"I have. She's five feet eleven inches of terrifying." Laura replies.

"No. I mean, you haven't seen Carmilla. Not like I have. She doesn't crawl into your bed at 2am shaking from head to toe and refusing to even speak. If other people get involved it's going to get worse for her." Danny explains.

Laura just gapes at her before blinking rapidly.

"Jesus." She mutters again.

"I know." Danny whispers.

"What can we do?" Laura asks.

"There's nothing we can do. It's like my mom says, she has to come to us. People in abusive situations like hers...they can't just leave. It's dangerous. She knows she has me and my parents and I know that she knows she has you and your dad but, Laura, you have to understand. Her mother has raised her to believe that she has no control over her own life. It's going to take some time for her to realize that's not true." Danny explains. Laura nods.

"If she's dating you and sneaking into your house at 2 in the morning then she must be getting there." Laura jokes.

Danny cracks a genuine smile for the first time all day. 

 

 

 

_14th._

 

Danny slowly blinks her eyes open.

There's a foreign sound coming from the end of her bed and for a brief moment she wonders if she accidentally left her ipod turned on. But that thought flies out of her head as soon as she spots Carmilla's hunched over form.

She sits up.

Carmilla's doubled over and crying into her hands at the edge of Danny's bed.

"Carm? Baby? What's wrong?" She croaks out, her voice still raw from sleep.

Carmilla doesn't answer. She just presses her hands harder against her face. Danny throws the blankets off of herself and slides onto the floor. She pads around to Carmilla and drops to her knees.

"What do you need me to do?" She whispers, resting her hands on Carmilla's thighs.

"I don't know anymore." Carmilla whispers, her voice muffled by her hands.

"That's okay." Danny says.

Carmilla slides off of the bed and into Danny's lap, wrapping her arms around Danny's neck.

"I don't know what I'm doing anymore." She cries.

"It's okay. It's going to be okay." Danny assures her, holding her tightly.

Carmilla presses herself harder against Danny and the two topple onto the floor.

"I love you so much." Danny says.

Carmilla tears her face away from Danny's chest and kisses her hard, over and over again, before she has to pull away because she's crying too hard to continue. Danny gently guides her back down onto her chest and holds her close.

-

"Are you okay, Danny?" Perry asks as Danny yawns for the 5th time in 2 minutes at practice.

"Yeah, I just didn't sleep much." She replies.

"How's Carmilla?" Perry asks.

"She's...better." Danny lies.

The truth was she and Carmilla had stayed up all night, sprawled out on her floor. Carmilla hadn't attempted to sneak out in the morning, instead she had asked to use Danny's bathroom to shower and had borrowed her red and white baseball shirt to wear today. Even though she never confirmed it, Danny's fairly certain she was kicked out again last night. But she keeps the information to herself.

"Emily watch you six!" She calls out as Maddie rams into her from behind. Emily growls.

"Was she really sick like she's telling everyone?" Perry asks, leaning back against the goal.

Danny just gives her a look.

Perry nods.

 

 

_15th._

 

"This was a good idea." Carmilla says, tightening her grip on Danny's hand as they stand in line at the theater.

"Yeah?" Danny asks, looking down at her girlfriend and smiling.

"Definitely." Carmilla replies.

Danny steps up to the ticket window and gets their tickets.

"So, what's this one about?" Carmilla asks, holding the door open for Danny.

"Thanks. Uh, something about a train? I don't know but Rosario Dawson is in it so we can gawk at her." Danny replies.

Carmilla elbows her.

"What? I'm just saying."

-

"I'm pretty sure that would never work." Danny mumbles.

Carmilla's head shifts slightly from where it rests on Danny's shoulder.

"Like seriously the friction alone would cause the engine to like, combust." Danny explains.

Carmilla doesn't reply.

"Carm?" Danny asks.

No response.

She looks down and realizes that Carmilla is fast asleep, curled up against her. Danny smiles to herself and presses a kiss to the top of Carmilla's head.

-

"I'm so sorry I fell asleep." Carmilla says as she buckles her seatbelt. Danny laughs.

"Don't worry about it. You just missed my lecture on physics and more of Rosario Dawson's face."

"I love your physics lectures." Carmilla groans.

"It's okay." Danny says, reaching for Carmilla's hand.

"I've just been..." Carmilla trails off, suddenly serious. Danny squeezes her hand as she pulls out of the parking lot.

"Having trouble sleeping?" Danny guesses.

"Among other things." Carmilla admits. 

They drive in silence for awhile before Carmilla breaks it.

"It's been getting rough." She whispers.

"How rough?" Danny asks, her throat suddenly dry.

"There used to be times where she was...tolerable. But now...now it's like I can't do anything right." Carmilla says.

"Do you think- I mean, is it because of us?" Danny asks.

"No. I mean, she bitches about us dating but she's not like, actively forbidding me from seeing you. It's just, I don't know. I can't explain it. Sometimes I think she can read my mind." Carmilla replies.

"What makes you say that?" Danny asks.

"It's like she knows I'm planning on leaving." Carmilla whispers.

"Do you think-"

"No, there's no way. There's no way she knows that. I think she can just sense I'm happy and she wants to squash it out of me- not literally, Danny." She says, catching the horrified look forming on Danny's face.

"Is that why you've been so tired lately?" Danny asks.

"Yeah." Carmilla says, averting her eyes.

Danny can tell she's lying, but she lets it go and focuses on the road.

 

 

_17th._

 

"Why is there so much information on this test?" Carmilla groans, dropping her textbook to the floor and groaning.

She slumps against Danny's side. Danny laughs.

"I don't know, but I think I need a break." Danny says, closing her notes. Carmilla sighs.

"You know what you should do?" Carmilla says, nudging Danny.

"Take my pants off?" Danny suggests. Carmilla lightly slaps her chest.

"Later. But first, you should play me something." She says, nodding over at Danny's instrument collection.

Danny jumps up off the couch and grabs her guitar. She settles back down on the couch with it and Carmilla rests her chin on her shoulder. She strums a few chords before settling into a familiar tune.

"Here Comes The Sun." Carmilla whispers. Danny nods.

"It reminds me of you." Danny whispers back.

Carmilla kisses her cheek and rests her head against Danny's shoulder as she continues to play.

 

 

_18th._

 

"Listen, I’m not saying it she’s an alien but…" Maddie trails off with a shrug.

"You are absolutely insane." Julie says, still staring at Maddie like she’s grown an extra head.

"You are honestly telling me that you’ve never once considered the possibility-"

"Maddie, our AP Bio teacher is not an alien." Julie interrupts, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Do you not remember that one episode of Buffy with the eggs-"

"That was a bug. I thought she was a bug." Danny interjects.

"The teacher that seduced Xander? Yeah, she was a bug. Thing. A bug thing." Perry says.

"Yeah, but she could have easily been an alien!" Maddie insists.

"Maybe Mads is right about the turkey sandwiches being laced with something because…" Perry trails off.

"Oh my god do NOT encourage her." Julie grumbles as Maddie gives Perry a thumbs up.

"Look, I’m just saying. I’m pretty sure she’s an alien. So when her little army of Kree-wannabes show up and take over the school one day, don’t come crying to me." Maddie says.

Just then, Laura walks up and takes her usual seat.

"Who’s an alien?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Don’t. Just. Don’t." Danny says as everybody but Maddie groans.

-

Carmilla yawns for the third time and tries to focus on the picture layout in front of her.

"Alright, that's it. Where are your keys?" Danny asks.

"In my bag, why?" Carmilla asks.

"Save your stuff, we're going to go take a nap. I would say I'd take you home with me but we have that history exam in 8th that we can't miss." Danny explains, digging through Carmilla's backpack and pulling out her keys.

"You are absolutely the best." Carmilla says, saving her layout and practically leaping out of her chair.

Danny leads the way out into the parking lot and they scramble into the backseat of Carmilla's car. Danny stretches out on the seat and Carmilla flops down on top of her with a moan.

"You are so comfortable." Carmilla mumbles, her voice muffled by Danny's shirt.

"You're just saying that because you're sleep deprived." Danny teases, wrapping her arms around Carmilla.

"Maybe." Carmilla jokes, her eyes flickering shut.

Before Danny can come up with a comeback, Carmilla's asleep. She sighs and sets an alarm so they won't miss their 8th period and goes back to stroking Carmilla's back.

 

 

_19th._

 

"I'm just worried." Danny admits.

She and Perry are the only ones left on the ice after their hockey practice. Perry takes her mask off and sighs.

"Have you talked to her about it?"

"It's a delicate situation, Per."

Perry sighs.

"Well, has she mentioned anything at all about it?" She asks. Danny shrugs.

"She told me her mom is being more bitchy than usual and she's having trouble sleeping but...honestly, I feel like something else is going on." Danny admits.

"Is she- I mean, are you guys still..." Perry trails off, blushing.

"Yeah. And no, I haven't noticed any marks on her." Danny replies. Perry nods.

Danny stares out over the empty ice.

"You guys have that lab report date tonight, right?" Perry asks.

"Yeah."

"That'll be good." Perry says, softly nudging Danny's arm.

"I don't know, Per, I just can't shake the feeling that something is really really wrong." Danny admits.

Perry slings her arm around her.

"It'll be okay."

"I just love her so much and I-" Danny stops, tears forming in her eyes.

"I know, Danny. I know."

-

She paces the sidewalk outside of their usual coffee place. Carmilla is an hour late and her phone is turned off. Danny sighs and tries to calm the panic rising in her chest. She contemplates calling Laura but then thinks better of it.

Danny rakes her hand through her hair for the millionth time and watches as another young couple strolls past her and into the shop.

She tries dialing Carmilla's number again but it goes straight to voicemail.

She resists the urge to hurl her phone across the parking lot. A broken phone wouldn't do her any good, she reminds herself.

She waits for another half hour before driving home, her hands shaking the entire way.

She doesn't sleep that night, waiting for Carmilla to slip into her bed.

But she never does.

 

 

_20th._

 

Danny has the resist the urge to tackle Carmilla when she walks into AP Chem and finds her slumped over in her stool. She rushes up to her and Carmilla sleepily meets her eyes.

"We'll talk in our spot." Carmilla says before Danny can even open her mouth.

Danny nods and takes her seat next to Carmilla. Carmilla keeps her hand discreetly on Danny's thigh the entire time Mrs. Vector goes over the pre-lab lecture. After, Danny walks Carmilla over to the lab station with her hands on Carmilla's hips. Betty catches them and smirks.

"You guys are obnoxiously cute, you know that?" She says.

Carmilla winks at her as Danny blushes.

"Okay, what's our first step?" Carmilla asks, yawning. She catches Danny's concerned look and shakes her head.

"Uh, we need to measure out the calcium." Danny says, reading from the lab manual.

Carmilla gets started on that while Danny prepares the other step. They work in tandem for several minutes, Carmilla pausing to yawn multiple times.

They finish early, and Carmilla slumps against Danny's side while they wait for the bell to ring.

"Sixth period?" Danny asks. Carmilla nods.

"I promise, baby." Carmilla mumbles, not moving from Danny's side.

-

"I still haven't heard anything from Rogers." Danny tells Perry as she sits down beside of her.

"Me either." Perry admits.

"I haven't heard from NYU yet, either." LaFontaine says, leaning around Perry. Danny frowns.

"Taking their sweet a-"

"Language!"

"-aaaahhhnchovie time." Danny finishes lamely as LaF giggles. 

"Who's what now?" Julie asks, dropping into her seat followed quickly by Maddie.

"Rogers." Perry and Danny reply in tandem.

Julie nods.

"You guys will get in." Maddie assures them, poking at her turkey sandwich. "God I hate these things."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." Laura teases, sliding into her seat.

"Cute, Hollis. Real cute." Maddie gripes, narrowing her eyes at her. Julie elbows her.

Danny checks her phone again before sliding it back into her pocket. Laura catches her eye and shoots her a concerned look. Danny shakes her head.

Six period couldn't get here fast enough.

-

Danny closes the door to the storage room behind her as Carmilla turns to face her.

"If I tell you what I'm about to tell you, you have to promise you won't tell anyone. Not Perry. Not Laura. Not your parents, not anyone. Nobody can get involved." Carmilla whispers. Danny nods her head.

"I promise."

"I'm serious, Danny. You don't understand, if this gets out. If she finds out-" Carmilla's bordering on hysterical. Danny shakes her head and reaches for Carmilla's hands.

"I won't tell a soul. If that's what you need, I won't tell anyone. I promise you." Danny says, squeezing Carmilla's hands.

"It's bad, Danny."

"How bad?"

"She's been..." Carmilla trails off.

"Has she hit you?"

"No."

"Okay." Danny whispers, waiting patiently as Carmilla looks down at their hands.

"She used to, when I was a kid and I didn't do what she wanted me to or I messed up somehow, she used to lock me in the old freezer we have in our basement." Carmilla admits.

"THE FRE-"

Carmilla clamps her hand over Danny's mouth.

"Shh. It wasn't plugged in."

"That doesn't make it any better!" Danny mumbles out against Carmilla's hand.

"I know that now." Carmilla replies, lowering her hand.

"Wait. Is she- she's- Carmilla, she's not-" Danny stutters out.

Carmilla looks away.

"That's why you haven't been sleeping. She's been locking you up at night sometimes, Carmilla, you have got to get out of-"

"I can't. Danny, I can't you don't understand. She would come after me. She's a lawyer. She's has connections. With the cops, with the legal system...there's no way to leave until after we graduate. And even then..." Carmilla trails off.

Danny's begun to pace, still reeling from the information she's been given.

"Even then what?" Danny asks.

"I haven't heard back from anyone, Danny. Not even my backups. Not the financial aid people, not the grants, nothing." Carmilla admits. Danny shakes her head.

"I'm not leaving you with her." Danny says.

"You're not giving up on-"

"No! No, I didn't mean it like that. I meant that even if you don't get in, we'll figure something out. Together. You're not alone in this, Carmilla." Danny says.

Carmilla just stares at her before slowly nodding her head. She takes the few steps separating them and pulls Danny against her.

"You don't know how much I wish that I could-" She stops herself and kisses Danny's neck.

"I know." Danny replies, pulling her closer.

 

 

_22nd._

 

They win their first playoff game 3-2.

But while the rest of the team is celebrating, Danny can't tear her eyes away from the empty spot next to Laura.

-

She waits for two hours after the game.

Carmilla's phone is turned off.

She has to pull over twice on the drive home because the tears stinging her eyes are blinding her.

 

 

 

_23rd._

 

Danny wakes up at just after 1am to her blankets being pulled off of her body.

She rolls over. Carmilla’s kneeling next to her legs, the blankets clutched in her trembling hands.

"Carm?" Danny whispers.

Carmilla drops the blankets and quietly climbs on top of Danny’s body, settling with her head presses to Danny’s chest. Danny reaches out and pulls the blankets back over them.

A few moments of silence pass.

"I’m sorry." Carmilla whispers, barely audible.

"What? Why?" Danny asks, stroking her hand down Carmilla’s back.

"There are so many things I-" Carmilla stops herself, shaking her head and tightening her grip on Danny’s shirt.

"It’s okay." Danny mumbles, kissing the top of Carmilla’s head.

"I just want you." Carmilla whispers.

"You have me." Danny replies, tightening the arms she has around Carmilla’s body.

-

At a little past 6 in the morning, Danny watches as Carmilla gathers her things from her bedroom floor. Carmilla quietly slips her shoes back on and looks around the room.

"There's one in the closet." Danny whispers.

Carmilla looks up and smiles. She walks over to the closet by the door and opens it, grabbing the old blue hoodie hanging in there and tugging it on over her clothes.

"I wish you could stay." Danny says.

Carmilla walks over to her and kisses her softly, once, twice, three times before pulling back.

"Me too." She mumbles against Danny's lips. "Soon. Just a few more months."

"I love you." Danny whispers.

Carmilla kisses her again harder.

 

 

_25th._

 

"You rang?" Danny says, leaning against the door to the yearbook room.

"Come look at these." Carmilla says, gesturing to the computer in front of her.

Danny walks over and glances at the layout.

"Holy shit." She breathes out.

Several pictures of her hockey team are neatly arranged on the screen. She recognizes them. The dogpile on Gina after she scored her first goal. Maddie in the faceoff circle. Danny bumping helmets with Perry after her first shutout. Emily resting during a timeout. And the last one, Danny winking at the camera while everyone swarms Perry in the net from their last seasonal game.

"These are amazing." Danny says, kissing the side of Carmilla's head.

"Yeah?"

"Definitely. You're amazing."

Carmilla blushes and nudges her arm.

"You're just saying that because I go down on you on the regular." She jokes. Danny snorts.

"Oh totally." Danny teases.

Carmilla gives her one of her famous nose-crinkling smiles and Danny's heart feels like it's going to fly out of her chest.

 

 

_26th._

 

"What do you want to do for your birthday?" Carmilla asks as Danny traces her fingers down Carmilla's bare back.

"You." Danny says, kissing Carmilla's shoulder. She laughs.

"Besides that. Dinner? Movie?"

"Honestly, my parents will probably take me out to dinner and I know Perry and Elsie want to get together the night before so...I really don't care as long as you're involved." Danny replies.

"I'm pretty thrilled to show you your birthday present." Carmilla says.

"Is it you in lingerie?" Danny asks. Carmilla laughs.

"No, you horn dog."

Danny grins and starts kissing her way down Carmilla's back.

"Can you blame me?"

"Not in the slightest."

Danny rests her head against Carmilla's lower back.

"I still worry about you." She admits quietly.

"I know." Carmilla whispers.

"I love you so much." Danny whispers.

Carmilla shifts, making Danny lift her head up. She rolls over and reaches for her, tugging Danny up and on top of her.

"I know." She whispers.

She reaches for Danny's hand and presses it against her chest. Danny can feel Carmilla's heartbeat thrumming under her fingers. Carmilla looks up at her, intensely. Danny can feel the unspoken words pass between them.

She leans down and kisses her.

 

 

 

 

_29th._

 

Danny shoves back at the Murphy defensemen and skates back toward center ice. Maddie manages to hang on to the puck and gives the winger the slip. She passes the puck over to Danny, who fakes out the goalie, aims, and shoots. The puck sails into the back of the net and she cheers.

They were now up 4-1 on Murphy in the quarterfinals.

She glances up into the bleachers to find Laura and Carmilla cheering, Carmilla wearing Danny's black hockey jersey from last year. She grins.

"That was brilliant, boss!" Elsie says, skating up to her.

"Stop calling me that." Danny replies, lightly shoving at her as they make their way back to the bench.

"Your girl is wearing your jersey." Elsie teases. Danny rolls her eyes.

"I know, I gave it to her."

"That's pretty serious."

"Will you shut up." Danny laughs as they take their seats.

Elsie spends the remaining minutes of the game refusing to shut up.

When the buzzer sounds, Danny skates back onto the ice to celebrate with Perry.

"Semi-finals here we come!" Maddie yells.

Perry laughs as Danny pulls her into a bear hug.

"You were so great!" She says. Perry shoves at her.

"Look who's talking, Miss Two Goals And An Assist." Perry teases.

"Aw, y'know." Danny replies, shrugging.

She glances back up at the bleachers but Carmilla's not there anymore.

-

Danny paces the parking lot next to her Camero, checking her phone for thousandth time when suddenly it dings.

'Had to leave early, see you tomorrow.' 

Danny sighs and re-reads Carmilla's text over and over with a sinking feeling settling in her stomach.

 

 

 

_30th._

 

"It's almost your birthday." Elsie says, nudging Danny's arm with her elbow.

Danny's lying on her back between Elsie and Perry in Elsie's backyard, staring up at the stars. They had gone to dinner together as an early birthday celebration for Danny.

"I know."

"The big One Eight." Perry says.

"I know." Danny groans.

Elsie laughs.

"Aw, come on, it'll be fun."

Danny sighs.

"Yeah, I guess. I just don't like the idea of getting older sometimes." She admits.

"I felt the same way on my birthday." Perry says.

"Do you guys ever wonder what it would be like if we didn't have to worry so much?" Elsie asks.

"All the time." Danny replies. Perry nods.

"I'm so worried about Rogers." Perry whispers.

"I'm worried about finals." Elsie mutters.

"I'm worried about Carmilla." Danny admits.

They both turn to look at her.

"Boss-"

"Stop calling me that."

"Boss, you know we have your back right? Like, I know I don't know what the hell is going on but from what I've gathered it's some pretty serious stuff but whatever it is...if you need us, we're there." Elsie promises.

Danny takes a shaky breath.

"Yeah. I know that. But I don't think she does."

"Maybe you should show her?" Perry suggests.

"I don't know how." Danny admits quietly.

She feels Elsie's hand slide into hers while Perry leans her head against her shoulder.

-

Danny pushes open the door to her room and freezes.

Lying on her bed, wrapped in simple brown paper, is a large square package. She walks over and picks it up. It’s heavier than she expected and written on the paper in Carmilla’s handwriting is a note:

'Don't open until after midnight. Happy Birthday, Danny.'

A smile spreads slowly across her face. She glances over at the clock.

10:57.

She sets the package back on her bed and just as she’s about to reach in her pocket for her phone, it buzzes. She pulls it out and reads the name above the message banner. Carmilla. She grins.

But the grin slowly fades into panic as she reads the two words Carmilla has sent her.

'Ballpark. Now.'

She runs.

-

She paces the length of the bleachers and checks her phone again.

11:34

No messages.

She's seriously considering calling up the Scooby Gang and just going over to Carmilla's house when she spots her.

She's limping.

Danny leaps off the bleachers and scales the gate, sprinting out to meet Carmilla in the outfield. She's holding her side and the corner of her lip is split wide open.

"Carm-"

Carmilla grabs the front of Danny's shirt and tugs her down into a desperate kiss.

She can taste blood.

"Carmilla, what happened?" Danny asks, pulling back.

Carmilla shakes her head, gripping Danny's shirt tighter. Danny's hands slide down to Carmilla's side and she winces. Danny moves her hands away.

"Carmilla, did she hurt you?" Danny whispers. Carmilla nods her head.

Her shoulders begin to shake and suddenly she's dropping to her knees. Danny drops with her, wrapping her arms around Carmilla's back and pulling her against her chest. Carmilla lets out a noisy sob. She releases Danny's shirt and grips the back of Danny's neck.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Carmilla cries. 

"No, no. You have nothing to be sorry for." Danny whispers, pressing her hands against Carmilla's back.

"I do. Everything's my fault. I'm sorry." Carmilla sobs out, pressing her face into Danny's shoulder.

"None of this is your fault." Danny says, pressing her lips against the top of Carmilla's head.

But Carmilla just sobs harder and continues to repeat "I'm sorry" over and over again, her mouth pressed against the fabric of Danny's shirt. Danny leans down and gathers Carmilla up into her arms before standing.

"I'm taking you home." She says. She carries her across the field, Carmilla sobbing into her neck.

The stars overhead feel like pieces of hers and Carmilla's souls, crushed up into stardust and scattered across the cosmos.

She doesn't know how to fix this.


	10. May

_1st._

 

Danny gently lifts an unconscious Carmilla from the passenger's seat of her car and kicks the door closed. She makes her way up the sidewalk and the porch steps to the door. She jams her elbow into the doorbell rapidly, hoping it's enough to wake her parents from sleep.

She waits impatiently, shifting Carmilla's sleeping body in her arms before jabbing the doorbell with her elbow again and again.

Finally, she hears the sound of her father mumbling grumpily and her mother making vague threats in Spanish. The door flies open and Derek's look of extreme annoyance drops quickly into one of concern.

"How did you- where did- is that- what are you doing?" He stutters out.

Beatrice appears at his elbow and her hand flies up to her mouth.

"Que pasó? Is that Carmilla? Dios!"

She shoves Derek aside and pulls Danny into the house. Derek slowly closes the door behind them.

"Her mother..." Danny trails off, gesturing with her head down at Carmilla's bruised and slumbering form. "She cried herself out at the park and then fell asleep on the drive home."

"Her mother did this?" Derek whispers, staring at the bruise forming on Carmilla's cheek and her split lip. Danny nods.

"I think she's hurt her side and her leg too. She was limping and kinda holding herself." Danny whispers back.

"Let's take her upstairs to your bed, Danny." He says, nodding to the stairs.

Danny carries her carefully up the steps and down the hall. She shoulders her door open and then gently lays her down on her unmade bed. Carmilla mumbles something in her sleep and rolls onto her side, gripping at one of Danny's pillows. Danny stands back and feels her dad's hand rest on her shoulder.

"Do you know what happened?" He asks.

"No. She wouldn't say anything other than 'I'm sorry' and I don't know if that means it has something to with us or-" She sighs. He squeezes her shoulder.

"It's okay." Derek says. Danny shakes her head.

"I knew- I knew it was bad but she told me not to-"

"Danny, this is not your fault. This is not Carmilla's fault. This is entirely on her mother." Derek interrupts.

Danny nods, trying not to cry. The door slowly opens and Beatrice walks in, phone in hand.

"When she wakes up we need to take her to the hospital and get her checked out." She says.

"Are you sure we should-"

"Yes. It's important to document- if she decides to- yes." Beatrice replies.

Danny gently sits down on the edge of the bed. Her mother begins to pace as Derek leans against the desk.

"What do I do?" Danny whispers after several minutes of silence. Beatrice stops pacing.

"Just be there for her. You love her, sí?"

"Sí." Danny replies.

"We'll do everything we can." Beatrice assures her.

-

Danny hears a sharp intake of breath from next to her. She sits up from where she'd laid down next to Carmilla and looks over. Carmilla's blinking rapidly and looking around Danny's room in confusion but the realization slowly dawns on her face. She looks over at Danny.

"You brought me home?" She asks. Danny nods.

Danny can't ignore the warm feeling in her chest at Carmilla considering Danny's bed home.

"Do you- do you remember what happened?" Danny asks. Carmilla closes her eyes.

"Yeah."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Carmilla keeps her eyes closed and doesn't answer.

"It's okay if you can't." Danny whispers. 

"She knows, Danny." Carmilla says.

"Knows what?"

"She had all my letters from the financial aid people, the grants, the universities...everything." Carmilla whispers.

Danny tenses up.

"She knew all along, she was just waiting for the right time to spring it on me and when she caught me coming home from leaving you your present..." Carmilla trails off.

"What happened?" Danny asks.

"She threw them all in my face. She told me I wasn't going. That I was going to decline everything and stay here. I wasn't worth it and I didn't deserve to leave." Carmilla whispers. She reaches over and takes Danny's hand.

"I told her, no, I was going and that she couldn't stop me. That's when-"

She squeezes Danny's hand.

"She hit you?" Danny guesses. Carmilla nods.

"Backhanded me right in the mouth."

Danny shakes her head and squeezes Carmilla's hand.

"Fuck." She whispers.

"I panicked and I tried to run and she grabbed me. I knew she was going to try to lock me in the freezer again-"

Danny growls.

"-so I tried to fight back but she was too strong. I honestly don't know how I managed to get away from her. Years of hanging around Laura and her Krav Maga, I guess." She laughs bitterly.

Danny shakes her head.

"And that's when you texted me?"

"Yeah. I still had my keys in my pocket so I just bolted out to my car and took off. I drove around for a bit in case she tried to follow me and then I- my car! Shit, what am I going to do about my car?" Carmilla says.

"You still have your keys, right?" Danny asks. Carmilla sticks her free hand in her jacket pocket and nods. "We'll go get your car from the park tomorrow."

"If it's still there." Carmilla mutters. She sighs and then winces, touching her side.

"My parents want to take you to the doctor." Danny says. Carmilla just stares at her. "They said- well...I'll let them explain, okay?"

Carmilla nods.

"I think I might have sprained my ankle when I was..." She trails off and swallows.

"Okay." Danny whispers. "Do you want me to go get my parents?"

"What time is it?"

"Close to 2:00. But it doesn't matter." Danny replies.

Carmilla nods and Danny leans over, kissing her gently on the cheek. She slides off the bed and slips out of the room.

-

Danny's sitting in the waiting room, her leg bouncing uncontrollably. She shifts in the uncomfortable seat for the hundredth time in the last hour. Her dad looks up at her from the issue of _National Geographic_ he's reading.

"It's going to be fine, Cadet." He says gently.

Danny nods and tries to focus on one of the magazines on the table next to her, but all the words look jumbled up. 

She sighs and leans back in the chair, her leg still bouncing.

Finally, the door to the waiting room opens and her mother and Carmilla step out. Derek tosses the magazine back on the table as Danny leaps to her feet. 

"I'm okay. Nothing's broken but my ribs are pretty bruised." Carmilla says as Danny walks up to her. She nervously looks around the waiting room. "Can we leave now?"

"Of course, quierida." Beatrice replies as Derek nods.

Carmilla reaches for Danny's hand as soon as she's next to her and holds it the whole silent walk out to the car. As they climb in, Danny notices her mother holding a folder.

"What's that?" She asks. Beatrice waves her into the backseat and shakes her head.

Danny reaches for her seatbelt as Carmilla settles into the middle seat so she can rest her head against Danny's shoulder.

"We just need to make a quick pit stop." Derek says as he starts the car.

They drive in silence to the 24-hour store a few miles down the road and Derek leaves the car running as he runs inside with a quick "Be right back!" tossed over his shoulder.

"What is he getting?" Danny asks. Beatrice shrugs.

"That man? No idea." She replies and rolls her eyes. Danny feels Carmilla let out a breathy laugh against her arm.

Minutes later, Derek's jogging back to the car with a plastic bag. He digs into it as soon as he's in the car and he pulls out a giant bag of gummy bears and tosses it into the backseat.

"Save me the orange ones, you two." He says reaching back into the bag.

"That won't be a problem." Danny jokes.

He pulls out a toothbrush and hands it back to Carmilla, who takes it silently.

"I remembered we didn't have any spares at the house and I assumed you wouldn't want to share Danny's. She bites the bristles."

"Habit." Danny mumbles out around a mouthful of gummy bears.

Carmilla stares at the green toothbrush in absolute awe and suddenly she's crying.

"Did I- should I not have done that?" Derek asks.

"It's not- thank you." Carmilla replies as Beatrice elbows him. "I'm just-"

"It's okay." Danny mutters, holding Carmilla close and signalling for her dad to start the car.

He turns around and starts the call, pulling out of the parking lot and back onto the road.

-

"How are you feeling?" Danny whispers, tracing her finger across Carmilla's forehead.

"Relieved?" Carmilla replies, snuggling a little closer to Danny's body.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

They lay in silence in Danny's bed for a few more moments before Carmilla clears her throat.

"Danny?"

"Yeah, babe?"

"Did you open your present yet?"

Danny finger stutters to a stop. She looks over at the package still sitting on her desk.

"No, actually. I was worrying over you." She replies, gently tapping Carmilla's nose.

"You should." Carmilla whispers.

"Right now?"

Carmilla nods.

Danny sits up and slides off the bed, walking over to her desk and grabbing the package. She carries it with her back to the bed and sits down on the end of the mattress. She glances back at Carmilla who's watching her intensely. She looks back down and tears the paper off. Her heart stops.

It's a painting.

But not just any painting.

It's of a red boat with a yellow sail, Max's sailboat from _Where The Wild Things Are_. Underneath it, in Carmilla's handwriting, is a quote from the book. Her favorite quote.

' _But the wild things cried: oh, please don't go- I'll eat you up, I love you so!_ '

"This- this is- you-" She stutters out, turning back to look at Carmilla who's sitting up.

"Turn it over." Carmilla instructs softly.

Danny turns the canvas over in her hands and sees more of Carmilla's handwriting:

'I love you. CK.'

She stares at it, reading the three words over and over again in her head. She feels the bed shift and then Carmilla's arms are sliding around her neck. Carmilla kisses the side of her head.

"I mean it. I love you, Danny." She whispers.

Danny feels like her body is being pulling every direction. She turns and meets Carmilla's stare.

"I love you." Carmilla repeats.

Danny kisses her, over and over and over again, and she's never been more sure that people are made of stardust than in that moment because she can feel galaxies bursting into life beneath her skin.

 

 

_2nd._

 

Danny's standing at the counter spreading mustard on some bread when Carmilla walks in wearing Danny's red and white baseball shirt.

"There you are." She says sleepily.

"Yeah, I figured you'd want some lunch when you woke up so I'm making sandwiches." Danny replies, smiling at her.

"That's not turkey though, is it?" Carmilla asks, coming up behind Danny and wrapping her arms around her waist.

Danny drops the knife and laughs.

"What? Is it?" Carmilla asks, peaking around Danny's arm. Danny shakes her head no. "What's so funny?"

"It's just- you know Maddie, right?"

"Yeah."

"She's got this vendetta against turkey sandwiches-"

"-good for her. They're gross."

Danny laughs harder and reaches for the cheese.

"What's your stance on BLTs with cheese?" She asks. Carmilla presses her face against Danny's back and nods.

"Those are nice."

"Good, 'cause that's what I'm makin' us."

"Danny?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Danny grins and spins in Carmilla's arms. She leans down and kisses her.

"I love you too."

-

"The person who says 'there's no way I'm getting chopped!' is almost always the person who gets chopped." Carmilla says, exasperatedly.

Danny laughs.

"It's true!" Carmilla insists. "Watch."

'Chef Andrew. You've been chopped.'

"What did I tell you?" Carmilla says, pointing at Danny's face resting on her shoulder.

They're sprawled out on the living room couch watching Food Network and waiting on Danny's parents to get home.

"He was pretty arrogant, I'm glad he got chopped." Danny says, lightly trailing her fingers up and down Carmilla's bruised side. "Do you need the icepack again?"

"No, I'm okay." Carmilla whispers, resting her hand on top of Danny's arm.

The door opens.

They both look over and see Beatrice and Derek walking in.

"Hey girls." Derek calls out, dropping his keys on the table near the door.

"Hey dad!" Danny calls back as Carmilla moves to sit up with a wince.

"Have you been using the icepack?" Beatrice asks.

Carmilla nods.

"Listen, we need to talk." Beatrice says, gesturing to Carmilla and Danny. Carmilla stiffens.

"About what?" Danny asks.

Beatrice sits down in the rocking chair across from them.

"Carmilla, you know you can stay here as long as you want." She says softly. Carmilla lets out the breath she's been holding. "We'll help you with anything you need. But..." She trails off.

"But?" Danny interjects.

"You should probably talk to Mr. Hollis."

Carmilla looks down at the floor.

"I just don't want anyone to know." She whispers.

"I know, but legally we can't do anything. He can." Beatrice assures her.

"He's a social worker." Danny whispers.

Carmilla looks over at her and holds her gaze for a few seconds before turning back to Beatrice.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yes, I'll talk to him. If he can make it so she can't-" Carmilla shakes her head. "I'll talk to him."

Danny reaches over and presses her hand gently against Carmilla's back.

 

 

_3rd._

 

"Which chapter is it?" Carmilla asks, looking up from flipping through Danny's history textbook.

"Twelve." Danny replies, looking up from the email from their history teacher.

"This would be so much easier if I had my books." Carmilla mumbles, running her hand through her hair.

"Well, Mr. Hollis said he'd go with you to get your stuff if you needed him to." Danny says.

"I just don't..." Carmilla trails off.

"Think you can go back there?" Danny guesses. Carmilla nods.

"It's just too much." Carmilla says, shaking her head.

"It's okay. We'll figure something out." Danny replies, closing her laptop and sliding into the floor across from Carmilla.

"Laura's dad said he didn't think my mom could get to my bank account because it's in my name and I'm eighteen." Carmilla says as Danny gently takes the textbook out of her hand.

"That's good." Danny replies.

"I'm honestly ready to go back to school tomorrow. It'll be nice." Carmilla says. Danny nods.

"Yeah, me too."

"But..." Carmilla trails off.

"But what?" Danny asks.

"I'm kind of scared." Carmilla admits, looking down at the floor.

"Of what?"

"My mother showing up here." She whispers.

"She has no right." Danny says, shaking her head.

"That's not going to stop her. I'm just worried she'll show up with some kind of court order and-"

"Hey. No. We're not going to let that happen." Danny assures her, tenderly reaching across and cupping Carmilla's cheek.

"You sure?"

"Absolutely."

-

The doorbell ringing jolts Danny awake from her nap. 

She looks over at Carmilla, who's still sprawled out beside of her in one of her old hockey hoodies, and raises an eyebrow.

"Your parents don't ring the doorbell, do they?" Carmilla asks, tensing up.

Danny gets out of the bed without a word.

"Stay here?" She asks, reaching for one of her hockey sticks in her equipment bag. Carmilla nods.

Danny carefully makes her way down the stairs and into the living room. The doorbell rings again and she grips the hockey stick tighter. She carefully reaches out and, after counting to three in her head, swiftly unlocks the door and swings it open.

Laura squeaks from behind a stack of pizza boxes as Perry and Julie both yell and jump behind LaFontaine and Maddie. Elsie raises her eyebrows.

"Expecting someone else?" She asks.

Danny lowers the hockey stick and sighs.

"What the hell are you dorks doing here?" She asks, smiling.

"We brought pizza!" Laura's voice sounds from behind the stack of pizza boxes.

Danny tosses her hockey stick onto the chair and grabs half of the pizza boxes from Laura.

"And you fuckers made the shortest person carry all these?" She asks, gesturing with her head for all of them to come in.

"We thought it'd be funny if you opened the door and saw a stack of pizzas with legs." LaFonataine explains as they lead Perry inside.

Danny shakes her head.

"Just chill here while I go get Carm." Danny says, handing the pizzas to Elsie. "Take those to the kitchen."

She takes the stairs two at a time and finds Carmilla already leaning in her bedroom doorway.

"Did I hear Laura and Elsie?"

"Yeah, the whole friggin' wolfpack is here." Danny jokes, jerking her thumb towards the stairs. "You feel like coming down?"

"Yeah." Carmilla replies, smiling.

Danny smiles back and leads the way downstairs.

"'EY!!" Everyone yells as soon as Carmilla rounds the bottom of the stairs.

"We brought pizza!" LaFontaine calls as Laura rushes up to Carmilla and flings herself at her.

"Awesome." Carmilla replies, rubbing Laura's back. "I'm fine, Laura."

"Just checking." Laura says, pulling away from Carmilla sheepishly.

Everyone files into the kitchen.

"You okay?" Danny asks leaning into Carmilla as Perry passes out plates.

"Yes." Carmilla replies genuinely, grinning up at her.

-

Danny sleepily makes her way into the kitchen, stepping over a snoring Elsie. The girls and LaFontaine had decided a sleepover was a good idea so, with the okay from Danny's parents, were camping out in the living room. It was also doing wonders for Carmilla's anxiety.

She finds Laura sitting at the kitchen counter with a bottle of water.

"Hey, Little Bear." She says quietly, using the affectionate nickname she gave her years ago when they first met. Laura smiles.

"Hey." Laura replies.

Danny slides into the stool across from her.

"What's keeping you up?"

Laura shrugs.

"Probably the same thing that's keeping you up." She replies.

"Carm?" Danny asks. Laura nods.

"I'm just so worried. I mean my dad says that legally she's eighteen and she has proof and stuff so her mom can't DO anything but..."

"...but you're worried she's going to try something." Danny finishes. Laura nods. "Me too." Danny admits.

They sit in silence for a few more minutes before Danny speaks.

"She's going to be okay." She says.

"She has you." Laura replies. "And your parents and all of us."

Danny nods.

"What are my two girls doing up?" Carmilla asks, stepping over Elsie and into the kitchen.

"Plotting things." Danny jokes. Carmilla shakes her head and moves over to lean against Danny's back.

"Should I be concerned?"

"Always." Laura teases.

Carmilla laughs and squeezes Danny's shoulders.

"You two going to go to bed anytime soon?"

"Yeah, you go lay back down I'll be there in a minute." Danny replies, looking up at her.

Carmilla gives her a nose-crinkling smile and leans down, kissing her softly. She straightens up and reaches over, ruffling Laura's hair.

"Goodnight, Squirt."

Laura rolls her eyes as Danny laughs. She shoves Carmilla's arm away.

"Goodnight, Broody McJerkface."

Carmilla glides out of the kitchen, lightly hopping over Elsie.

Danny turns back to Laura.

"Yeah, she's going to be just fine."

 

 

_4th._

 

"Good to see you back, Karnstein. Lawrence." Mrs. Vector says, pausing in her walk around the lab stations.

"Thanks." They reply in unison.

Danny turns back to the beaker.

"Okay, what color is this supposed to be?"

"Blue."

"And is it?"

"No."

"So what color is it actually?"

"Purple."

"What the hell did we do wrong?"

"No idea."

Danny groans and drops her head to the counter as Carmilla runs her hands through her hair.

"Great." She mutters.

"Yo, Princess!" Carmilla calls out. Betty looks up.

"What?"

"Why is our thingy purple?"

Betty tilts her head to the side and then looks over at Dave. Dave shrugs. She turns back.

"You probably didn't put enough of the zinc but...I don't know for sure." She calls back.

Carmilla nods at her and turns back to Danny, who reaches for the beaker.

"Zinc me." She says.

"Nerd." Carmilla laughs, taking the beaker from her.

"You love it." Danny replies.

"I do. And you." Carmilla says, winking at her.

Danny blushes.

-

"How's today been?" Perry asks as Danny takes her seat.

"Pretty good so far." Danny replies.

"How's Carmilla?"

"She's okay, I think. I mean, she's still pretty anxious but I can't blame her. I'm kind of on edge myself."

Maddie yawns and drops into her chair.

"Your floor is not comfortable, bro." She says. Danny laughs.

"I told you to take the extra pillow." Julie says, sliding into her chair beside her.

"But that would have left you with just one." Maddie argues.

"I would have been okay." Julie laughs. Maddie shakes her head.

"Not on my watch."

Danny rolls her eyes as LaFontaine makes a fake gagging sound and takes their seat.

"Listen, both of you are massive saps when it comes to your girlfriends so I don't wanna hear it." Maddie fusses, pointing at both of them.

"She's not wrong." Laura says, dropping into her seat.

"Thanks, Hollis." Maddie says making Julie laugh.

"Speaking of, how is Carmilla?" LaFontaine asks, leaning around Perry.

"She's okay." Danny replies.

"Good." Maddie says.

Danny smiles.

-

"Hey." Danny says, leaning against the door to the yearbook room.

"Hey." Carmilla replies, focusing on the computer in front of her.

"How are the layouts coming?"

"Come here and I'll show you."

Danny walks over and leans down next to Carmilla. She looks over all the pictures of the baseball team in action.

"These look good." She whispers. Carmilla smiles at her.

"I'm behind because I haven't been here to upload all my stuff." Carmilla says, rolling her eyes. "I've got so much crap to do on these layouts."

"Want me to keep you company?" Danny asks, grabbing the chair next to her.

"Always." Carmilla replies with a smile.

They sit in silence before suddenly:

"Take me to prom?" Carmilla blurts out.

Danny's head snaps up.

"What?"

"I mean, if you want to, would you-"

"Absolutely. Yes. Yes, absolutely. Let's go." Danny says, jumping out of her seat.

"Baby, it's not until the end of the month." Carmilla laughs.

"I got excited." Danny says, flopping back down into the chair.

"So yes?"

"Yes." Danny replies, leaning down and kissing Carmilla over and over again.

-

"I still can't believe it." Danny mumbles staring at the paper in her hand.

"Believe it, baby." Carmilla says, pouncing onto the bed making it bounce.

"Rogers." She whispers.

"You're going to Rogers." Carmilla says, beaming at her.

Danny continues to stare at the acceptance letter in her hand. She had come home from school to find the letter waiting in the mailbox and she had paced in the living room with Carmilla waiting for her parents to get home to open it. She'd barely read out the word "congratulations" before Carmilla had jumped on her and her mom had started singing in Spanish.

"Not only did you get in, you got in with an academic scholarship." Carmilla whispers, softly tracing her hands across Danny's belly.

"I got in." Danny whispers.

Carmilla reaches up and gently takes the letter out of Danny's hands. She leans back and carefully folds it before rolling off the bed and placing it gently on Danny's desk. She turns around and Danny continues to stare at her. She reaches down and starts to unbutton Danny's flannel shirt she's been sleeping in as she makes her way back to the bed.

"What are you doing?" Danny whispers.

"Your parents are home so I can't do what I want to do but..."

She finishes unbuttoning the last button and climbs back into the bed, sliding into Danny's lap. She pulls Danny down into a kiss as Danny's hands slide under the shirt and onto Carmilla's bare skin.

"I just want your hands on me." Carmilla explains.

Danny kisses her again and again and again.

 

 

_5th._

 

"Okay, okay, okay seriously." Maddie calls out. "That's not a word."

"It is a word." LaFontaine argues.

"There's no way."

"I will get the dictionary."

"Aglet? That's definitely a word. It's the little plastic bit on the end of your shoelaces." Carmilla says, walking past the Scrabble board on her way to where Danny's sitting.

Maddie groans as LaF fist pumps. Julie laughs.

"Is it my turn now?" She asks, nudging Maddie with her elbow.

"Yes." Maddie grumbles.

They're all gathered in Danny's living room after their hockey practice. Maddie, Julie and Lafontaine are attempting to play Scrabble in the floor while Elsie, Danny, Laura and Perry swear at each other over Mario Kart. 

"I cannot BELIEVE-" Laura starts.

"Oh what the fuck ever, Hollis, you know you nailed me with that blue shell like 2 minutes ago." Danny cuts her off.

"I'M TIRED OF YOUR BANANAS MARIO!" Perry blurts out as her question block gives her another banana. "Give me something useful!"

"None of ya'll punks are in last place. I am. So quit whining." Elsie snaps.

Carmilla shakes with silent laughter as she sits down on the floor and slides back between Danny's legs. Danny immediately drapes her arms over Carmilla's shoulders and re-grips her controller.

The doorbell rings and Beatrice yells that she's got it as she dashes out of the kitchen.

"HOW DID YOU GET IN FRONT OF ME!?" Laura yells as Danny's Princess Peach zooms past Laura's Toad.

Danny cackles.

"Aha! Bullet Bill!" Perry exclaims.

Suddenly, they're interrupted by a commotion by the front door. Everyone's head whips around in confusion as someone barrels past Beatrice and into the living room.

"Carmilla."

"Mother?"

The entire room is on its feet in an instant.

"Lady, you've got a lot of nerve-"

"We know what you did, we all know-"

"Carm's not going with you-"

"You should be arrested-"

"ENOUGH!" Beatrice yells.

She rounds on Carmilla's mother.

"Excuse me, but you are not welcome in my house."

"You're holding my daughter hostage-"

Danny scoffs and opens her mouth to argue but Derek shakes his head at her.

"She's welcome to leave at any time but she's choosing to stay here with us."

Carmilla presses herself harder into Danny's back as Danny, Laura and Perry all move to stand in front of her. Elsie and Derek shift so they're standing behind her as LaF, Maddie and Julie all move closer.

"She is my daughter."

"You sure as hell haven't treated her like one, have you? I've got a whole folder full of proof." Beatrice spits.

Carmilla's mother takes a step forward and looms over Beatrice, but the shorter woman doesn't budge.

"I will take her with me."

"You want to take Carmilla home with you? Fine."

Carmilla deflates against Danny's back.

"But you'll have to go through every single person in this house."

"Yeah, and I've got anger management 'issues'" Maddie interjects, making air quotes. "LaF once broke a kid's nose, Julie can go from sweet little Asian girl to Tasmanian Devil in less than half a second, I've seen her do it. Laura knows Krav Maga, Perry lets people shoot pucks at her face for FUN, Elsie's got a mean right hook and Danny...well, just look at her. The odds are definitely not in your favor."

Danny feels Carmilla let out a shaky breath against her back.

Carmilla's mother makes eye contact with every single one of them...and nobody flinches. She scoffs.

"I'll be back with a warrant."

"You won't. I have it on John Hollis's word that you're legally bound. You can't do anything. So stop the threats." Beatrice snipes back. "And get the hell out of my house."

Carmilla's mother looks as if she's going to argue but instead, with one last glare in Carmilla's direction, turns on her heel and leaves, slamming the door behind her.

"Jesus Christ." Perry breathes out from Danny's right as Laura leans into her left side.

"What are you all standing around for? Dinner's almost ready, quit your games and get in the kitchen. Rápido!" Beatrice says.

Everyone scrambles except for Danny and Carmilla. Derek squeezes Carmilla's shoulder and heads to the kitchen as Danny turns around.

"Upstairs?" Danny asks. Carmilla nods.

Danny leads Carmilla up the steps, down the hall and into the bedroom. As soon as the door closes, Carmilla's in Danny's arms and sobbing.

"It's okay." Danny whispers. "It's okay, you're safe. We're all here and we've all got you."

Carmilla squeezes her tighter.

 

 

_6th._

 

"Clear the crease! Clear the crease!" Danny calls out as Elsie and Ali scramble to get the puck away from Perry's skate and away from the goal.

They manage it and the puck sails back toward center ice. They were up 3-2 in the final minutes of their semi-final game against Apex. Maddie snags the puck and dodges one of the Apex defensemen. She fires off a shot but the goalie easily deflects it and Apex is back in control. Danny slams into the winger with the puck and steals it back, passing it over to Julie. If they could just hold on for another minute...

Julie shoots, but it pings off the goalpost. Elsie snags the rebound and passes it back to Danny who ducks around the Apex center and passes it over to Maddie. Maddie passes it back to Elsie, who almost loses it to one of the wingers but keeps possession and shoots. The puck sails wide but it doesn't matter because the buzzer sounds.

Danny slams into the boards with an exhausted cheer.

They were going to finals.

She looks over into the bleachers and spots Carmilla, wearing her red jersey from her freshman year and beaming. She blows her a kiss and Carmilla rolls her eyes but pretends to catch it anyway.

Danny grins.

-

"I'm going to have to go shopping soon." Carmilla complains as Danny drives them home.

"I don't know, you look cute in my shirts." Danny teases.

"I've been wearing the same pair of jeans for almost a week. Your mom keeps having to wash them every night." Carmilla groans. Danny laughs. "I mean, I want to go get my stuff but I don't want to run into my mother. Plus, she's probably trashed it all by now."

"Doesn't she have a trial tomorrow?" Danny asks. Carmilla nods.

"Yeah, she'll be gone most of the day. I thought about going over but I just don't think I can." She replies.

"That's perfectly reasonable." Danny assures her.

Carmilla sighs and leans against Danny's shoulder while the gears turn in Danny's brain.

 

 

_7th._

 

"This is the shittiest idea I have ever heard of, Lawrence. And I am SO PUMPED."

Danny rolls her eyes as Maddie climbs into the backseat of Perry's mom's minivan with Julie and Elsie.

"Listen, we have to be quick. She's going to be home by 3:00 and it's 1:00 now." Danny explains as Laura pulls the door closed from her middle seat next to LaFontaine.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" LaFontaine asks.

"No. It's a terrible idea but I'm going to do it anyway." Danny replies. LaF shrugs.

Perry pulls out of Maddie's driveway and onto the road as Danny briefs the group on what to do and what not to do.

"And finally, don't touch anything that isn't Carmilla's. Seriously. Please. For the love of god. No matter how much you hate the woman." Danny finishes.

"Deal." Elsie calls out from the backseat.

A few minutes later, Perry's parking several houses down from Carmilla's mom's.

"Okay, let's go." Danny says.

Everyone climbs out of the van and casually strolls up to the house. Maddie makes a show of digging out her own house key from her pocket in case the neighbors are watching before leaning down and picking the lock.

"Why am I not surprised?" Perry mumbles as the door swings open. Maddie winks at her.

They all quietly and carefully walk into the house...where Laura promptly backs into a lamp. Danny barely manages to catch it before it hits the ground.

"Way to go, Hollis." Maddie giggles. Laura blushes.

"I didn't see it!" She hisses.

"Guys, come on. Carmilla's room is the attic." Danny says, leading the way to the pull down ladder. 

One by one, they all climb up into Carmilla's room. Danny immediately grabs Carmilla's bags from under her bed. She tosses one at Elsie and one at LaF and nods towards Carmilla's wardrobe.

Julie grabs Carmilla's book bag and shoves all of her textbooks into it while Perry grabs another bag and piles in some of the books from Carmilla's bookshelf. Danny and Laura quickly pack Carmilla's record collection into a box.

"What time is it?" Maddie asks, looking up from helping Perry.

"Almost 2:00." LaF replies, checking their watch. 

"Okay, you guys take this stuff out the back door and to the van. We'll lock up and meet you there." Danny directs, gesturing at everyone but herself, Laura and Perry.

The others drop back down into the hall while Laura and Danny help lower things down the ladder. Once everything is clear, the group, minus the trio, heads out the back door.

"Did we get everything?" Laura asks. Danny grabs her letterman jacket from the back of Carmilla's chair and the stuffed puppy from off of her bed.

"Now we did."

Perry starts to climb down to ladder to the hallway when the sound of the front door opening makes her freeze.

"Shit." Laura hisses out.

Perry scrambles back up the ladder and she and Danny quickly pull it back up.

"Fuck. Shit. Fuck." Laura swears over and over.

Danny pulls out her phone and a text from Julie pops up.

'Wicked Witch of the West is back!'

'Stay in the van, we'll find a way out.' Danny texts back.

Laura swears again and Perry grabs her shoulder.

"Stop panicking!" She hisses.

They hear Carmilla's mother's voice coming from the hall.

Danny grabs Perry by her shirt and yanks her over to the bed while gesturing at Laura to hide. She and Perry scramble under the bed while Laura looks around frantically as the voice gets closer. Laura finally yanks open the wardrobe door and crams herself inside just as the ladder is pulled down.

"I haven't heard anything yet." Carmilla's mother says, climbing the ladder into the room. Perry clamps her hand over her mouth. "No she hasn't been here." She looks around the room for a few moments before descending the ladder again. The door swings shut and Perry and Danny both exhale.

The wardrobe door slowly creaks open and Laura scrambles out.

"Now what?" She whispers.

Danny jerks her head over to the window.

"Are you kidding me?" Perry mutters.

"It's the only way." Danny whispers back. Laura looks like she's going to faint.

Danny crosses the room to the window and quickly slides it open.

"You guys, it's not a big deal. This is how Carmilla sneaks out." 

"Carmilla isn't barely five foot two!" Laura hisses, slapping Danny on the arm.

Danny rolls her eyes and gestures to the roof of the back porch right below the window.

"Just slide down there and wait, okay?"

Perry crawls out of the window first and onto the roof. Laura slides out after her, less gracefully, and squeaks.

"Shh!" Perry admonishes. Laura rolls her eyes.

Danny drops the stuffed puppy and her jacket out first before sliding out and then shutting the window behind her.

"Follow my lead." She whispers.

She walks along the roof until she gets to the far left corner and swings her legs down, easily finding the notch in the chimney and dropping down gently to the ground. Perry tosses her the jacket and the puppy before following her with surprising ease.

"That wasn't so bad." Perry whispers.

They both look up at Laura, who's frozen. Perry gestures at her and Laura takes a deep breath before swinging her legs down-

-and missing the notch completely.

She shrieks and Danny facepalms.

"Laura!" Perry hisses.

Laura drops to the ground with a loud thud and Danny just stares up at the sky.

"Seriously?" She mutters.

Laura scrambles to her feet and jogs past them.

"I'm good, let's go!" She says.

Danny and Perry stare at each other before taking off after her.

 

 

 

 

_11th._

 

Danny wakes to the sound of groaning coming from behind her. She rolls over the find Carmilla, eyebrows knitted together, mumbling in her sleep.

"Babe?" She whispers.

Carmilla's grip on her pillow tightens and she shakes her head.

"Carm?" Danny says, gently touching Carmilla's arm.

Carmilla snaps awake with a yelp.

"Whoa, easy. I'm sorry. It's just me." Danny whispers.

"Danny?"

"Yeah, hey."

Carmilla settles back onto the mattress with a sigh.

"You okay?" Danny asks.

"Yeah, just...nightmare." Carmilla explains.

"What was it about?"

Carmilla rolls over and rests her head on Danny's chest. Danny immediately wraps her arms around her.

"I don't want to talk about it." She whispers.

"That's okay." Danny replies, rubbing her hand down Carmilla's back.

"Danny?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Danny kisses the top of her head.

"I love you too."

 

 

_12th._

 

"Emily watch your six!" Danny calls out. Emily spins out of Maddie's way and keeps control of the puck.

"How's Carmilla?" Perry asks, lifting her mask up.

"She's doing better." Danny replies.

"That's good. Has her mom-"

"No. Nobody's said anything. I kind of feel like she knows but she just assumes Carm came back for everything." Danny says. Perry nods.

"That's good." She says, wincing as Toby misses another easy block.

"Tobs! Watch it!" Danny calls out.

"God, they're going to be screwed with me gone next year." Perry mutters. Danny laughs.

"Probably."

 

 

_13th._

 

"You guys ready for tonight?" Laura asks, dropping into her chair.

Danny doesn't look up from staring at her applesauce. Perry shrugs and Maddie grunts.

"That's a no." LaFontaine says. Laura laughs.

"You guys are going to be fine!" She assures them.

Danny continues stirring her applesauce with her plastic spoon. Maddie pokes at her turkey sandwich.

"Rationally, we know this. But that doesn't stop the nerves." Julie says, looking slightly nauseous.

Laura and LaFontaine exchange amused glances.

Danny groans and drops her head onto the table.

-

Someone grabs the back of Danny's shirt and drags her into the library supply closet. Before she has a chance her open her mouth Carmilla's kissing her, hard. She pulls back and taps Danny's face with a folded up piece of paper.

"What's this?" Danny asks, taking it from her.

"Read it." Carmilla replies, grinning.

Danny unfolds the paper and reads, her jaw dropping.

"You got into Rogers too!"

"Mr. O, my guidance counselor, called me into his office during lunch and gave it to me. Turns out, when they didn't get a response they sent a copy to the school just in case they got the address wrong." Carmilla explains, bouncing in place.

Danny grabs her and picks her up, spinning her around in the small space.

"We're going to Rogers!"

"We're going to DC!"

Danny sets her back down and Carmilla slides her hands around the back of Danny's neck. She pulls her down into a kiss that goes from soft and tender to heated. Danny's hands slide down and she swiftly unbuttons Carmilla's pants before slipping her hand inside. Carmilla groans against her mouth as her fingers begin to move.

"Good?" Danny whispers against her mouth.

Carmilla bites down on her lip.

-

Danny races the Reagan defenseman to the puck. She scoops it up and spins, passing it quickly back to Maddie. Maddie dodges the center and aims a shot at the goalie that goes wide. Danny swears under her breath.

They were deadlocked at zero with only minutes remaining in the third period.

She really didn't want the championship game to go into overtime.

Reagan's center gets the puck back and shoves past Elsie. Julie swoops in and knocks into her, jarring the puck loose. Jess swipes at it but one of the Reagan wingers gets it back. They fire off a shot that Perry manages to somehow block with her stick. The rebound goes straight to Maddie, who tears off to center ice. They were running out of time. She swerves around one of the defensemen and passes the puck over to Danny. Out of the corner of her eye, she catches a glimpse of Carmilla, biting her nails and once again wearing one of Danny's old hockey jerseys. Danny fakes a high shot that the goalie shifts to block and Danny sees her opening. She shoots-

-the puck sails into the back of the net.

The goal siren goes off followed immediately by the buzzer.

Danny drops down to the ice.

The crowd is deafening as Maddie and Julie both dive on top of her. Before she can even react, the entire bench is sprawled out with her on the ice.

"Way to go, boss!" Elsie yells.

She doesn't even bother to correct her this time.

 

 

_14th._

 

Danny bites back a moan as Carmilla's nails scratch down her back. She kisses Carmilla's neck again and curls her fingers inside of her. Carmilla hisses. 

"Fuck." She moans out as Danny's fingers speed up and then she's coming, hard, her nails digging harder into Danny's back.

Danny continues to kiss at her neck until her body relaxes.

"I am so glad your parents aren't home." Carmilla says as soon as her breathing returns to normal.

"Really?" Danny teases. Carmilla growls and suddenly Danny's on her back.

"Oh yeah."

She kisses her way down Danny's stomach and to her hips and then her thighs. At the first swipe of her tongue between Danny's thighs, Danny's hands are in Carmilla's hair and she's moaning.

Later, after she comes, Carmilla kisses her way back up Danny's body whispering "I love you" between every kiss.

 

 

_17th._

 

"I'm just nervous." Danny admits, leaning against the dressing room door.

"Danny, you're going to be just fine." Perry assures her from the other side.

"I just- I want it to be perfect. After everything, it has to be perfect for her."

Perry opens the door and steps out in a white dress. Danny shakes her head no and Perry nods, stepping back into the stall.

"She'll be with you."

"That's not- I mean, that doesn't mean it'll be perfect. You're forgetting the Homecoming Dance Fiasco with Laura last year."

"That was not your fault, though." Perry argues. "You had no idea she was going to get food poisoning from that veggie dip."

"Still-"

"Still nothing!" Perry interrupts, opening the door again. This time she's dressed in a glittery silver dress.

Danny tilts her head to the side and so does Perry.

"It's kind of itchy." Perry admits. Danny gives a thumbs down and Perry laughs, backing back into the stall.

"Look, you're going to be fine. It will be fine. Don't worry. I mean, you already have a dress for crying out loud."

Danny laughs.

"I got excited."

"Obviously."

The door opens again and this time Perry's in an elegant purple ballgown.

"Holy shit." Danny whispers.

"Language." Perry laughs out. "This is it."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yeah."

"LaF's gonna freak." Danny says, grinning.

Perry laughs.

"That's the plan."

-

She wakes to Carmilla crawling on top of her in the dark.

"Carm?" She mumbles out.

Carmilla doesn't answer, instead she presses her face to Danny's chest. Her shoulders are shaking.

"What's wrong?"

"I keep dreaming I'm back in there." Carmilla whispers, so quietly Danny almost doesn't hear her.

"Back in- oh, baby." Danny whispers, pulling her closer as Carmilla begins to cry. "It's okay. You're here. I'm here."

Carmilla's grip on her shirt tightens.

"I'm sorry." She says. Danny shakes her head.

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Danny replies.

Neither of them fall back asleep.

 

 

_19th._

 

"I am so tired of these godforsaken turkey sandwiches." Maddie grumbles.

Danny rolls her eyes as Perry sighs.

"I still don't understand why you don't just-"

"Way too much effort." Maddie interrupts Perry.

"You're ridiculous." Perry counters.

"Don't I know it." Julie jokes. Maddie glares at her.

"Thanks."

Julie laughs.

"I don't know what to do with myself now that we don't have hockey." Perry admits.

"Sleep." Danny and Julie reply at the same time.

Laura chokes on her cookie.

"Wait, when are finals?" Maddie asks, looking up from her fries.

"First week of June." LaFontaine replies.

"Right after prom? Ah, hell." Maddie grumbles.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Laura says.

"Hey wait," Julie starts, turning to Laura, "who are you going to prom with?"

"Elsie. But only as friends. We're not even getting each other corsages or anything."

Everyone stares at her.

"What?" She asks.

"She didn't...mention this to us." Julie says, slowly.

"Well...now you know?" Laura replies.

Maddie shrugs.

"Well, now the whole group is going together! Well not, going- we're meeting there but-"

"We get it, Per." Danny assures her.

"Good."

 

 

 

_20th._

 

"What do you want to do this summer?" Danny asks.

They're stretched out on Danny's bed and staring up at the ceiling.

"I never thought about it." Carmilla replies. "I usually work."

"Yeah, me too." Danny says. "But we'll have to work all the time once we move to DC."

"A summer off would be nice." Carmilla says.

"Would you want to take a trip with me?" Danny asks, shyly.

Carmilla rolls over.

"Where did you have in mind?"

"I don't know. How about the beach?"

A slow smile spreads across Carmilla's face.

"Just me and you?" She asks.

"Yeah." Danny replies.

"I'd like that. A lot."

"Awesome." Danny says.

Carmilla grins at her.

 

 

_24th._

 

"Fuck." Danny whispers out as Carmilla's fingers move faster between her legs.

"You're so close." Carmilla whispers against Danny's neck.

That's all it takes. She tumbling over the edge and griping the back of Carmilla's neck.

"Jesus." She breathes out once she's stopped trembling.

"Monuments." Carmilla teases, kissing her over and over.

"I'll build them myself." Danny replies, pulling her into a bear hug. Carmilla laughs.

"I love you." She whispers.

"I never get tired of hearing that." Danny says.

"I never get tired of saying it." Carmilla replies, smiling.

"Good to know." Danny says as Carmilla tugs her down into another kiss.

 

 

_27th._

 

"You guys ready for prom tomorrow?" Laura asks.

"Yes." Came a chorus of replies.

Danny groans.

"Danny, for god's sake, you're going to be fine." Perry says, elbowing her in the back.

"Carmilla's pretty excited." Laura says. "She's got her dress at my place and she's going to come get ready with me in the morning."

Danny groans again.

"Will you stop?" Maddie says, kicking her under the table. "Karnstein's like, in love with you."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"No buts!" Julie interrupts.

"Danny, seriously, Carmilla usually hates dances and yet she's practically bouncing off the walls to go to prom with you." Laura says.

"You're right, you're right. I guess it's just nerves." Danny admits.

"You have nothing to be nervous about. You know how to dance." Maddie says.

"Rationally, I understand, but then my brain is like 'ugh, Danny, you're totally gonna futz this up'" Danny replies.

"Why does your brain sound like Matthew McConaughey?" LaF asks.

"I don't know. That's just my generic impersonation voice." Danny replies.

"Danny, look at me." Perry says. Danny looks over at her.

"You'll be fine."

 

 

 

_28th._

 

"Carmilla's he-"

Beatrice freezes mid-sentence and stares.

"Oh, cariño." She whispers.

Danny turns around from the mirror on her desk and smiles. Her hair cascades over her shoulders in waves and perched in her hair just above her right ear is a daisy. She's wearing the dangling diamond earrings and matching necklace she borrowed from her mother. Her dress is light blue and matches her eyes. It's strapless and feathery soft, flowing down to her knees. Her silver heels glimmer as she stands.

"How do I look?" Danny asks.

"Oh, Danny. Te ves maravillosa." Her mother replies, beaming.

"It's not too much?" She asks, gesturing to herself.

"No. No not at all." Beatrice says, shaking her head.

"Good." Danny breathes out.

"Carmilla's downstairs." Beatrice says, winking at her.

Danny nods and nervously reaches for the corsage box sitting on her desk. She takes a deep breath and follows her mother out into the hall. She can hear Carmilla and her dad talking in the living room. She walks down the stairs behind her mother who immediately grabs Derek by his elbow and yanks him mid-sentence toward the kitchen.

She turns and there's Carmilla.

Her hair is up in an elegant bun and she's wearing a shimmering gold strapless dress that fits her tightly and stops just above her knees. She's wearing bright red lipstick and black heels. Around her neck is a string of pearls and she's wearing matching pearl earrings. She looks as stunned as Danny feels.

"What?" Danny whispers.

"God, Danny, you look like a Disney princess." Carmilla whispers. Danny blushes.

"And you- you look like Audrey Hepburn." Danny replies. Carmilla shakes her head.

"That's not fair, you know she's my favorite." Carmilla says, laughing.

"It's true." Danny assures her.

They stand there in silence, staring at each other, until Danny hears her dad cough out the word "corsage!" from the kitchen. She jumps.

"Oh! I- uh, this is...this is yours." She says, opening the box so Carmilla can see inside.

"It's a-" She clears her throat. "It's a sunflower. I know that they aren't typically used as corsages and you probably wanted like, a rose or something but I saw it as soon as I walked in the shop and I couldn't take my eyes off of it and do you remember that time we met at our coffee shop and I was late and you were working on a sketch?"

Carmilla nods.

"I couldn't stop looking at you. And I think- I think that's the first time I knew. And the sunflower reminded me of that so I had to get it and I'm sorry if it's not what you-"

She's cut off by Carmilla's lips pressing softly against hers.

"It's perfect." Carmilla says.

She holds out her hand so Danny can slide the flower onto her wrist with trembling hands.

"Are you nervous?" Carmilla whispers and Danny straightens the flower.

"Yeah, a little." Danny replies.

"Don't be." Carmilla says, leaning up and kissing her cheek.

She reaches over and picks up a box from the back of the couch and opens it.

"This is for you." She says. "It's a tiger lily. It reminded me of you."

She reaches for Danny's hand and gently slides the corsage onto it.

"It's beautiful." Danny says.

"Just like you." Carmilla replies, winking.

-

"You okay?" Danny asks as they walk up the sidewalk to the auditorium.

"Absolutely." Carmilla replies, looping her arm through Danny's.

They walk into the auditorium and immediately spot Perry and LaFontaine.

"Holy-" Perry says when they walk up to her.

"You guys look..." LaF trails off, gesturing at them.

"Thanks." Carmilla replies as Danny grins.

"Seriously." Perry says.

"Look at you two, though." Danny says.

Perry beams at her as LaF messes with their bowtie.

The song changes to a familiar upbeat tune and Danny turns to Carmilla.

"Oh no." Carmilla groans.

"Please?" Danny asks, squeezing Carmilla's hand. Carmilla caves.

"Okay, fine." She replies, allowing Danny to drag her over to the dance floor.

Danny laughs as Carmilla tugs on her hand and pulls her into her body. They move easily to the beat and are soon joined by a laughing Maddie and Julie.

"There you guys are!" Julie yells over the music. "You guys look stunning!"

"So do you!" Danny yells back as Carmilla winds her arms around her waist.

"I hate this song!" Carmilla laughs.

"No you don't!" Danny says.

"No. I don't." Carmilla admits as Danny twirls her around, laughing.

-

Danny laughs loudly as she watches Perry and LaFontaine spin around like goofballs on the dance floor. Nearby, Maddie and Julie are doing some weirdly synchronized robot dance. Carmilla slides into the chair next to her with two cups of punch.

"For you." She says, handing one of them to Danny.

"Thanks!" Danny says, grinning at her.

Carmilla snorts as Maddie starts hopping around playing the air guitar. They hear Perry and LaF dueting to the chorus and crack up even harder.

"God, they're cute." Carmilla says, shaking her head. Danny looks over at her and raises her eyebrows. "Shut up." Carmilla mumbles, shoving lightly at Danny's shoulder.

"I didn't say a word."

"You were thinking it."

"Yeah, but I didn't say it."

"Yeah but-"

"Oh my GOD!"

They both spin around to find Laura, in a sleeveless pink dress, accompanied by Elsie, who's in a red one.

"You guys look-" She gestures erratically.

"Smoking hot." Elsie says. Laura lightly hits her on the arm.

"Thanks." Carmilla replies, grinning as Danny blushes.

The song switches to another upbeat song and Carmilla jumps up, grabbing Danny's hand.

"Oh wow, seriously?" Danny teases.

"It's Betty Who, don't give me that crap." Carmilla replies, half dragging Danny to the dance floor.

Danny twirls her as soon as they get near Maddie and Julie. Carmilla spins so her back is pressed against Danny's front and they move together in time to the beat. Danny sings along to the song in Carmilla's ear, who can't stop grinning.

-

Danny collapses back into her chair, Carmilla next to her, and sighs.

"I can't feel my toes." Julie says, dropping into another chair at their table.

"This is so much better than last year." Perry says as LaF drapes their arm over her shoulder.

Maddie nods her head.

"Dave's a great DJ." She says. Everyone nods in agreement.

The music switches to a slow Whitney Houston jam and Laura immediately looks over at Danny.

"No." Danny says, pointing at her.

"It's Whitney."

"No."

"Danny please."

"Fuck, fine, come on." She says, letting Laura pull her to her feet.

They make their way out onto the dance floor and Danny grips Laura's waist and hand as they sway in time to the music.

"I'm so glad you guys came." Laura says.

"Me too, honestly." Danny replies.

"For someone who doesn't 'do' dances, Carmilla seems to be enjoying herself." Laura teases.

"Oh believe me, I fully intend on giving her shit about it after." Danny says. Laura laughs.

"Me too."

They continue to dance to Laura's favorite Whitney Houston song until Laura breaks the silence.

"I'm glad you two are together." She whispers.

"Yeah?" Danny asks, looking down at Laura.

"Yeah. You're so good together. For each other, too." Laura says.

Danny smiles.

-

"Enjoying yourself?" Danny teases as Carmilla continues to tug on Danny's arms as they dance.

"I am." Carmilla replies, her smile so bright Danny can't bring herself to continue picking on her.

"Good." She says, laughing as Carmilla tugs her down and kisses her.

"I want you to myself tonight, alright." Carmilla sings along to the song against Danny's jaw.

Danny squeezes her closer, laughing as Maddie and Perry go dancing past.

-

"What the-" Carmilla starts to ask as Kirsch goes rushing past, Laura, Elsie and Julie chasing after him.

"He keeps stepping on people's toes because he's jumping around like a moron to this song." LaF explains.

Danny shakes her head and takes another sip of her punch and leaning back in her chair. 

LaF suddenly chokes on their drink and gestures out to the dance floor, where Elsie and Perry and hopping around Maddie who looks mortified. Danny throws her head back laughing as Carmilla's head drops onto her shaking shoulder.

"What are they doing?" LaF asks.

"Honestly, I don't want to know." Carmilla replies.

-

"I am really really tired of hearing this song." Carmilla complains.

"Me too." Danny agrees, draping her arm over the back of Carmilla's chair.

"Like, at first I liked it because it has a nice beat but now..."

"I know exactly what you mean." Danny says, nodding her head. Carmilla leans into her more.

They watch as Elsie spins Laura around the dance floor while Perry and LaF do what looks like the Snoopy dance nearby.

"You're having a good time though, right?" Danny asks.

"Oh, absolutely." Carmilla replies, grinning up at her.

Danny squeezes her shoulders.

-

"It's Tegan and Sara we can't not dance to Tegan and Sara!" Danny exclaims, pulling Carmilla back onto the dance floor.

Carmilla laughs.

"Whatever you say, Slapshot."

Danny sticks her tongue out at her as Carmilla shimmies up to her. They both laugh and move close together in time with the beat. Danny catches Perry and Maddie watching them from the table with identical grins.

When the song ends they both lean back, slightly out of breath. They're about to head back to the table when Danny recognizes the slow song that's just come on.

"No wait, dance with me to this one?"

"One Direction. Really, Daniella?" Carmilla asks.

"Please?"

Carmilla steps up against Danny's body and lets her guide her into a slow sway.

"I really like the lyrics to this one." Danny whispers. Carmilla presses her face into Danny's neck as she listens.

_'I have loved you since we were eighteen.'_

Carmilla's grip gets tighter as the song plays on and Danny presses a kiss to the top of her head. After the song comes to an end, Carmilla tilts her head up and kisses Danny gently.

"I get it." She says.

Danny smiles.

 -

"Jesus." Carmilla breathes out.

"Yeah." LaF agrees.

They continue to stare as Danny, Julie, Perry and Elsie continue their dancing to "Crazy In Love"

"I mean I knew Danny could dance but..."

"Yeah." LaF agrees, still staring as Perry matches her move for move.

"What are you guys- oh." Laura cuts herself off and stares.

"Yeah." Carmilla and LaF reply in unison.

-

Carmilla gently grazes her teeth against Danny's neck.

"Careful with that." Danny says, her breath hitching in her throat.

Carmilla just grins at her and continues moving her hips against Danny's in time with the beat. 

"I just really like this song." Carmilla purrs, kissing Danny's throat.

"Jesus." Danny whispers. "Bathroom?"

Carmilla grins and lets Danny tug her off the dance floor and over to the door.

_'Cause we never go out of style'_

-

They slip back into the auditorium wearing matching grins with their hair a little bit messier just in time to catch the start of Danny's favorite song.

"Oh my god." She says. "Oh my god!"

Carmilla's already reaching for her hand.

"Let's go, Gingersnap."

They race over to the dance floor and immediately start dancing in time to the swing beat. 

"Why don't you come on over, Valerie!" Carmilla sings as Danny twirls her around.

"I love this song so much, I can't believe Dave's playing it!" Danny exclaims as Carmilla winds her arms around Danny's waist.

"You're so cute." She says.

Danny grins at her and pulls her in closer, swaying to the rhythm. Danny abruptly dips her and Carmilla laughs.

"No don't!" She yelps, but she's still laughing.

Danny tugs her back upright and laughs as Carmilla swats at her.

"Nerd." She mutters lovingly, shoving at Danny's shoulder.

-

The crowd has thinned out considerably, Maddie and Julie left nearly a half an hour ago with Elsie not far behind. Betty was crowned Prom Queen to Will's Prom King and Dave announces that this is the next to last song before blasting Walk the Moon's "Shut Up and Dance With Me." Danny laughs as Carmilla and Laura dance together near her and Perry.

"Good night?" Perry asks.

"Best night." Danny replies, grinning.

"Good." Perry replies.

Danny feels someone tugging on her arm and looks over to find Carmilla.

"C'mon, babe." She says, pulling her in close.

They all group together and jump around like goofballs, singing as loud as they can to the song until it ends.

"Okay guys, it's been a pleasure. I'll leave you with one of my all-time favorites, so grab your date and have fun!" Dave says.

A slow smile spreads across Danny's face at the familiar tune. She reaches for Carmilla's hand and pulls her in close. Etta James's voice drifts out of the speakers as the two silently waltz around the near empty dance floor.

"Fitting, isn't it?" Danny asks.

Carmilla smiles and nods.

"You know," she starts quietly, "I never really liked dances before. I always thought they were kind of trivial."

"What changed your mind?" Danny asks.

"Finding the right partner." Carmilla replies. "And you're mine."

Danny's heart feels like it's going to fly out of her chest.

She tilts her head down and kisses Carmilla gently.

"I'm yours." Carmilla whispers against her lips, smiling. "I'll eat you up, I love you so." She quotes. Danny kisses her again.

She understands now what all of those love songs are all about. This moment. Right here.

_'And here we are in heaven, for you are mine...at last.'_


	11. June

_1st._

 

"Our final is the end of next week." Carmilla grumbles, glaring at the beaker perched on the ringstand.

"I know." Danny sighs.

"Why is this stupid thing not solidifying?" Carmilla asks, gesturing at the beaker. Danny shrugs.

"We fucked up somewhere." She replies.

"No. No way. We're frickin' geniuses. We did everything right." Carmilla argues.

"Wait. Did you remember to add the drops of chlorine?" Danny asks, turning to look at Carmilla.

"Except that. We did everything except that." Carmilla says, immediately reaching for the tongs to remove the beaker from the heat.

Danny groans and rests her head on the counter while Carmilla dumps the beaker's contents into the waste bin and starts rinsing it out.

"This is stupid." Carmilla mutters to herself, returning with the clean beaker.

Danny lifts her head up and measures out more of the powder while Carmilla gets more of the solution.

"We're going to be fine." Danny says. Carmilla looks over at her and scoffs. "We will!"

"I'm going to have to study my ass off." Carmilla replies, shaking her head.

"No, don't do that. I like your ass." Danny says, winking at her.

Carmilla tries to keep her stern expression, but she can't. She giggles and shoves at Danny's shoulder.

"Shut up." She mumbles.

Danny just grins at her.

-

"How fucked are you for that Anatomy final?" Maddie asks, dropping into her seat across from Danny.

"Extremely." Danny replies, not looking up from her Physics notes.

"God, forget graduation I'm not going to survive finals." Julie groans, leaning her head on Maddie's shoulder.

Perry lets out a grunt of agreement, scribbling furiously in her Latin notebook.

"Is it really going to be that bad?" Laura asks, taking her seat.

"Probably."

"Yes."

"Totally."

"Oh yeah."

"Yep."

Laura sighs.

"Oh man." She mumbles.

"Laura, you're already taking advanced classes this year. You'll be fine." Perry assures her.

"That is true." Laura replies, taking a bite of her mac and cheese.

"Meanwhile, we're all in hell." Maddie grumbles, glaring at her turkey sandwich.

"You still gonna help me with that rocket this weekend?" LaFontaine asks, turning to look over at Danny.

"Yeah, definitely." Danny replies.

"Can I come?" Laura asks.

"Sure. You can keep Carmilla from blowing us all up." Danny says.

"Wait. We're not actually...I mean, there's not a chance of that happening is there?" LaF asks nervously.

"Normally, I would say no. But she's both my girlfriend and my lab partner so...I would not put it past her." Danny jokes, winking over at Laura.

Everyone laughs as LaF's face pales.

 

 

 

_2nd._

 

Danny mutters to herself as she sorts through her flashcards. She's sitting with her legs crossed on her bed while Carmilla reads over her History notes at Danny's desk. Carmilla pulls her glasses off and leans over the back of the chair.

"What are you doing?" She asks.

"Transverse abdominis- what?"

"What?"

"It- I- Anatomy." Danny explains, shaking her head.

"Where's that?" Carmilla asks. Danny points above her navel.

"Here."

Carmilla stands from the chair and stretches. Danny blinks a few times at the flash of skin between Carmilla's tank and her sweatpants. Carmilla catches her and smirks. She slowly makes her way over to the bed before climbing in. She gently takes the flashcards out of Danny hands and then lightly grips her wrists.

"Teach me?" She asks.

"Okay." Danny whispers.

She softly traces her fingers around Carmilla's eye, making her eyes flicker closed.

"Orbicularis Oculi."

She trails her fingers down to Carmilla's mouth.

"Orbicularis Oris."

Carmilla gently bites down on Danny's finger making her laugh. She traces her fingers down to Carmilla's neck.

"Sternocleidomastoid."

"Sternowhat now?" Carmilla asks. Danny shakes her head.

"Don't ask me how to spell that one, I'm working on it." Danny replies.

She trails her fingers over to Carmilla's shoulder.

"Deltoid."

"I knew that one."

Danny smiles.

"You'll know this one too." She says, tracing down Carmilla's arm.

"Biceps?" Carmilla guesses.

"Biceps brachii and triceps brachii." Danny replies, nodding and moving her fingers down further. "Brachioradialis."

"Brachioradialis." Carmilla repeats, tracing the same muscle on Danny's arm. "I like that one."

"Yeah?" Danny asks.

"Yeah."

"Turn around and take your tank off." Danny instructs.

Carmilla flashes her a wicked grin and strips off her tank top and Danny almost loses her focus at Carmilla's lack of bra. She turns around and Danny moves her hair off of her back. She slowly traces a finger down Carmilla's back.

"Trapezius."

Carmilla takes a deep breath and Danny's fingers fan out across her back.

"Latissimus dorsi." Danny whispers, dragging her fingers back up Carmilla's back slowly. "Levator scapulae."

Carmilla turns around making Danny pause.

"What?" Danny whispers.

"Maybe we should take a break." Carmilla says, reaching for the edge of Danny's shirt.

"My parents won't be home for a few hours." Danny whispers.

"I know." Carmilla says, tugging on Danny's shirt.

Danny leans in and kisses her as Carmilla tugs her down on top of her.

 

 

_4th._

 

"You're sure this isn't going to blow up?" LaFontaine asks wearily, taking a few steps back from Danny's rocket.

"LaF, you know I was kidding about that right?" Danny says, looking over at them.

"I knew you were kidding about the Carmilla part of the equation but not the whole thing." LaF admits. Carmilla lowers her sunglasses.

"Excuse me?"

"Danny told LaF you might make things blow up." Laura replies.

Carmilla makes a strangled noise of protest as Danny blows hair out of her face.

"Thank, Hollis." Danny says.

"If anyone is going to blow us up it's LaF." Carmilla says, pointing at them.

"Listen, just because in Sophomore Chem I accidentally set a couple things on fire-"

Carmilla coughs and it sounds suspiciously like "twenty-seven."

"-a couple things on fire does not mean that I would blow up a rocket." They protest.

"Nobody is touching my rocket but me." Danny interjects.

Carmilla laughs as Laura holds her hands up and takes a giant step backward.

"So you'll bl-"

"NOBODY IS GETTING BLOWN UP!" Danny yells, covering her face with her hands.

Carmilla doubles over, shaking with laughter as Danny groans and gestures at Laura and LaF to back up. She blows the hair out of her face again and curses her hair tie before walking over to where her rocket is set up. She checks, for the hundredth time, that everything is set up properly before leaning down.

"Seriously back up." She calls out to the others.

Laura takes a comical leap backwards while Laf scurries back even further. Carmilla just raises her eyebrow and takes a few steps backward. Danny leans back down and lights the fuse. She jogs over to where Carmilla is waiting, who immediately slides her arms around Danny's waist and tugs her back against her.

"Should we start a countd-"

Laura doesn't get to finish her sentence. There's a popping sound as the fuse ignites the rocket and it shoots off the ground and straight up into the air.

"Holy-" Carmilla mutters, tightening her grip on Danny.

The rocket curves slightly before slowly turning and then dropping back toward the earth and landing in the woods. Danny jumps up and down in Carmilla's arms.

"IT WORKED!" She shouts.

Carmilla laughs and tries to hold her still, but it's no use. Laura giggles as LaF continues to stare open mouthed at where the rocket disappeared.

"Danny, that was seriously probably like a hundred feet!" LaF says, shaking their head in astonishment.

Danny beams at them.

"I told you." She replies.

"So, you think you can show me how to do that?" LaF asks.

Danny grins.

"Hell yes."

 

 

_5th._

 

"Are you warm enough?" Danny asks, tugging the blanket around her and Carmilla more.

"Yes." Carmilla replies, snuggling back against Danny's chest.

They're stretched out on Danny's bed with her laptop watching Bob's Burgers.

"I see why you like this show, the humor is great." Carmilla says. Danny laughs.

"Louise is your favorite, yeah?" She asks.

"Oh hell yes." Carmilla replies.

"I knew that was going to happen." Danny teases.

"Half of the shit that comes out of her mouth is stuff that I've thought to myself at least once." Carmilla says, squeezing Danny's arms.

"I told you." Danny sings, making Carmilla roll her eyes.

"Don't push it." She says, elbowing Danny gently.

Danny rests her head on Carmilla's shoulder while they wait for the next episode to load.

"This is nice." She whispers. Carmilla nods.

"It is. I like being here with you."

Danny clears her throat.

"I'm sorry you can't go home." Danny says. Carmilla shakes her head.

"That was never my home. That wasn't where I lived, that was where I existed. I lived with you. I lived with Laura. I lived with the rest of the 'wolfpack.'" She replies, smiling. "That's not my home. You are."

Danny blinks a few times before leaning down and kissing her over and over again, ignoring the theme song playing on her laptop.

 

 

_6th._

 

Danny rubs at her eyes.

"My god, I'm hallucinating." She says, staring wide-eyed at Maddie's lunch tray.

"Go fuck yourself, Lawrence."

"Holy shit, is that pizza?" LaFontaine says, pointing.

"Get bent, LaF."

"Maddie oh my god." Perry says, grinning.

Maddie points at Perry and opens her mouth but clamps it back shut and hums angrily instead.

Julie flops down triumphantly in the seat next to Maddie.

"She lost a bet." Julie explains.

Danny chokes on her carrot.

"Do I even want to ask?" Laura says.

"No, probably not." Julie replies with a wicked grin. Maddie smirks.

"Well-"

"No, Mads." Julie interrupts.

"Fine, fine." Maddie mutters.

"Tell me later?" Danny whispers when Julie isn't looking.

Maddie gives her a thumbs up.

-

"Hey." Danny calls out, walking into the art room.

"Hey, come look at this." Carmilla says, not taking her eyes off of her canvas. She waves Danny over.

Danny leans around Carmilla to stare at Carmilla's work.

"Whoa." She breathes out.

It's a replica of the mural on Danny's bedroom wall, but done in the style of Van Gogh,

"We had to paint an original picture, but use the style of a famous painter. I was going to do a self portrait in Frida Kahlo's style but fuckin' Jaime beat me to it." Carmilla explains.

"That's my mural." Danny whispers.

"Yeah, it was easy to sketch from memory so I went from there. Plus..." She trails off sheepishly.

"Plus what?" Danny asks.

"It's just, I figured maybe we could hang it above our bed. You know, in our apartment. In DC. Next year." Carmilla mumbles out, blushing. Danny freezes.

"You- you want to live with me?" Danny asks.

"Danny, we kind of already live together." Carmilla replies. "But I mean, I just assumed- if you don't want to then I understand. It's probably too so-"

Carmilla's ramble is cut off by Danny's lips pressing against hers.

"I'd be honored." She whispers. Carmilla giggles.

"Aw, jeez, Danny. You don't need to get all proper on me." Carmilla teases. Danny laughs.

"I just mean, if you want to then yeah- yes. Yes, I would love to." She says.

"Well, alright then." Carmilla says.

Danny kisses her again.

 

 

 

_7th._

 

"Okay, but why can't I come?" Laura asks, leaning against Danny's car. Carmilla laughs.

"It's SENIOR Skip Day, Squirt. And you're a Junior." Carmilla replies, lifting her sunglasses.

Laura grumbles.

"Fine, I'll just suffer through everything by myself!" She says, rolling her eyes.

"It's not a big deal, Little Bear." Danny says, sighing.

"Maddie and Julie didn't even bother showing up for homeroom. Perry and LaF bolted as soon as the bell rang and now you guys are leaving me." Laura groans.

"Don't be dramatic." Carmilla says, nudging her with her elbow.

"Yeah, go find Elsie." Danny says.

Laura pretends to consider it for a second.

"Bring me back one of those giant cookies from the mall?" She asks.

Danny laughs as Carmilla groans.

"What are we, your parents?" Carmilla asks.

"Please?" Laura begs.

"Okay, fine! Fine. Just don't- don't do that dumb pout thing you do, that's cheating." Carmilla sighs, exasperated.

Danny continues to shake with laughter. Carmilla slaps her in the stomach and fixes her sunglasses.

"Come on, Clifford."

"CLIFFORD?" Danny yelps as Laura laughs.

"It fits."

"It doesn't."

"You're a giant puppy."

"I'm not THAT giant."

"Kinda are."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Not."

"Are."

Danny groans and starts the car, waving at Laura as she laughs her way across the parking lot.

-

"What are you doing?" Danny asks as Carmilla tugs her into one of the changing room stalls.

"Trying something on." Carmilla replies, innocently holding up the shirt draped over her arm.

"You know it's going to fit." Danny says, raising an eyebrow.

"Who said I was talking about the shirt?" Carmilla asks, reaching for Danny's belt.

"We're going to get caught." Danny whispers as Carmilla smirks.

"Not if you stay quiet." Carmilla whispers back, tilting her head up and kissing Danny's jaw.

-

"I cannot believe we got kicked out." Carmilla mutters darkly, kicking at a loose rock in the parking lot. Danny laughs.

"I told you." She says.

"I'm just glad they didn't call the cops." Carmilla says, turning and leaning against the car beside Danny.

"I think that lady was just so shocked it was two girls in there that she didn't think to." Danny replies, still grinning.

"I told you to stay quiet." Carmilla teases, nudging Danny's arm. Danny snorts.

"Uh, my head was between your thighs I'm pretty sure I wasn't the one making all the noise." Danny counters.

Carmilla laughs.

"I know, but it makes me feel better to blame you." She admits.

Danny shakes her head.

"Come on, we need to get to the mall and get our child her damn cookie."

Carmilla snorts.

-

Carmilla kicks her under the table.

"What?" Danny asks, pausing with her fork halfway to her mouth.

"You're cute." Carmilla says, shrugging.

Danny stares at her before slowly taking a bite of her sesame chicken. They're sitting in the mall food court with their Chinese food. A small child goes sprinting past them screaming. Carmilla winces.

"Daycare." She mutters under her breath. Danny chokes on her food, laughing. Carmilla laughs as Danny clears her throat.

"You don't like kids?" Danny asks. Carmilla shrugs and reaches for her eggroll.

"I like the concept, just not the execution."

Danny cackles and sets her fork down.

"What? It's true. They're loud and messy and...ugh, no thank you." Carmilla says, shuddering.

"You have a point there." Danny says, nodding.

"What about you?"

"I go back and forth. Sometimes I think it'd be nice to settle down and have a kid but then other times I visit my mom's classroom and no. No thank you." Danny replies. Carmilla laughs.

"Point taken."

"I don't see how she does it, honestly." Danny says, shaking her head.

"Well, she did a good job with you." Carmilla says.

"Awww-"

"No don't-"

"Awwwwwwww-"

"Stop it-"

"You're getting all squishy!"

"I'm not-"

"You're like a marshmallow!"

"No-"

"A squishy, sappy marshmallow!"

"Daniella Taylor Lawrence."

"That was unnecessary, Carmilla Eleanora Karnstein."

"Wow, low blow." Carmilla says, tossing her wadded up napkin at Danny's face.

"You started it." Danny says, shrugging.

Carmilla shakes her head and laughs.

-

"Yes, Laura. We got your fucking cookie." Carmilla says into her phone, shaking her head at Danny. Danny laughs.

"Tell her I put it on top of her fridge." Danny jokes. Carmilla laughs.

"Danny says she put it on top of your fridge." Carmilla laughs even louder. "She says that's rude even though she knows you didn't."

Danny grins.

"Mailbox, Laura. It's in the- yeesh!" She yanks the phone away from her ear as Laura's shriek cuts through the speaker.

"I think she found it." Danny says, grinning. Carmilla swats at her with her pillow.

"Yeah. Yeah, yeah don't get all- yeah whatever. Love you too, Shortcake." Carmilla rolls her eyes and hangs up as Danny giggles.

"She's ridiculous." Danny says.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Carmilla replies, grinning.

"Good day?" Danny asks.

Carmilla rolls across the bed and over to Danny, kissing her lightly on the nose.

"Best day."

 

 

_11th._

 

"I'm so not ready for this." Danny whispers. Carmilla squeezes her thigh.

"We'll be fine." Carmilla assures her.

"Okay class, put away everything but a pencil and your calculators it's test time!" Mrs. Vector announces.

Danny groans and clears her desk while Carmilla does the same thing beside of her.

"See you on the other side." Danny whispers, saluting her.

"Don't be dramatic." Carmilla laughs, shoving her lightly.

-

"What exams do you have today?" Laura asks as Danny drops into the seat beside of Perry.

"Anatomy, AP Chem, Physics and then our AP English exam." Danny replies.

"English will be a breeze." Laura says. Perry nods.

"I think that's the only one I'm not worried about." She admits.

"Latin won't be that bad." Danny says. LaF groans.

"For you two maybe. I can't spell for shit." They reply.

"Where are Maddie and Julie?" Perry asks.

"Library. They ate a big breakfast so they could skip lunch. They have that Calculus exam today." Danny replies.

Everyone groans.

"Shit, I have to take that next year." Laura groans.

"Quit worrying, Little Bear." Danny says, shaking her head.

"I can't help it."

"You're going to take Perry's mom title." LaF jokes.

Perry and Laura make identical offended noises.

LaFontaine and Danny laugh harder.

 

 

_12th_

 

Danny collapses onto a chair in the library. Carmilla slides her arms around Danny's neck and kisses her cheek.

"One more."

"One more exam, one more day after today." Danny groans out, leaning her head back against Carmilla's.

"It's History so we'll be fine."

Danny nods.

"I'm just so tired."

"Just think, after this last exam we get to go home and take a nap." Carmilla says. Danny groans.

"That sounds so nice." She whispers.

"Just you and me. And a blanket. And your bed. And sleep." Carmilla says, punctuating each sentence with a kiss on Danny's head.

"I love you." Danny mumbles.

"I love you too." Carmilla replies, grinning.

 

 

_13th._

 

"Last name?" Carmilla asks, not looking up from her stack of paper.

"Really?" Danny asks.

"Re- oh, hey babe." Carmilla says, lowering her list and grinning. "I've got yours right here."

She reaches under the table and pulls out a thick black book with Danny's name on the cover and hands it over to her.

"I'm excited to see all the pictures you took." Danny says, turning the book over in her hands. "I don't want to hold up the line, I'll see you later?"

"Check page 27." Carmilla says, winking at her.

Danny tilts her head to the side, but backs out of the way of the girl behind her.

She walks back down the hall and out of the building, pausing on the sidewalk to flip through her yearbook. She turns glossy page after glossy page until she gets to the one Carmilla told her to check. 27. 

Danny stares down at a picture of her and Carmilla dancing on the near-empty dance floor at prom. She recognizes it from when "At Last" was playing and smiles. Next to the picture she spies Carmilla's handwriting:

"Thank you for the best night of my life and for every best night with you that's yet to come. I'll eat you up, I love you so. CK"

She grins.

-

"Here." Danny passes Maddie back her yearbook after signing it. Maddie grins and takes it.

"I just don't get the point of all this." LaF says, capping their pen and handing Julie back her book.

"It's tradition." Laura replies.

"Don't complain." Perry fusses, poking LaF on their arm.

"I wasn't!" They protest.

"Oh you so-"

Danny's sentence is cut off by someone plopping into her lap.

"Hey." Carmilla says, draping her arms around Danny's shoulders.

"Whoa, what are you doin' here?" Danny asks, grinning.

"Yearbook, remember? I'm taking my lunch break." Carmilla replies, leaning down and kissing Danny lightly.

"Hey, Queen C. How's it going?" Maddie asks.

"Pretty good." Carmilla replies, winking at her.

"Oh! Sign my yearbook?" Julie asks, scrambling for her pen.

Carmilla rolls her eyes but the smile doesn't leave her face.

"Okay fine, hand them all here."

 

 

_15th._

 

"Oh my god, we graduate tomorrow." Danny whispers.

"Today. Check the time." Carmilla replies, nodding to the clock on Danny's desk.

Danny groans and covers her face.

"I'm gonna trip and faceplant." Danny mutters.

Carmilla tugs her hands away from her face.

"You will not." She assures her.

"I'm so nervous."

"Why?"

"I have no idea, honestly." Danny replies, shaking her head.

Carmilla kisses her.

"It'll be fine. Just think, graduation in the morning, dinner with your parents, one day of absolutely nothing and then the beach." She reminds her. Danny sighs.

"You're right."

Carmilla kisses her again.

"Of course I am."

Danny laughs and tugs Carmilla closer.

-

"Look at you." Laura says, gesturing at Danny after the ceremony. Her black graduation gown was now open over her black dress and her Honors cords were danging around her neck.

Danny grins at her.

"Speak for yourself, Miss Junior Marshall." Danny teases. Laura rolls her eyes and tugs at the red sash draped over her white dress.

"It's not a big deal."

"It is."

Laura looks up at her and Danny sees it coming. She braces herself as Laura flings herself at her and buries her face in her neck, crying.

"It's okay." Danny whispers.

"I'm sorry." Laura mumbles out.

"Wait, for what?" Danny asks, rubbing Laura's back.

"Last Summer. I shouldn't have- I'm sorry." Laura whispers.

"It's- no, don't be." Danny replies, gripping Laura tighter.

"I'm going to miss you so much." Laura says, clinging to the material of Danny's gown.

"You can always come visit." Danny whispers.

"I will. I promise." Laura says.

"And I'll come see you on breaks." Danny says.

"Drag Carmilla with you." Laura says.

"Oh, I promise." Danny says.

Laura laughs and pulls back, dropping back down to her feet. She tugs on one of Danny's cords.

"I love you." She whispers.

Danny leans down and kisses her on the cheek.

"I love you too, Little Bear."

-

Danny tries not crack up laughing at the sight of an extremely exasperated Carmilla flanked on either side by a bouncing Maddie and Perry.

"Please help." Carmilla says as Danny approaches.

"You seriously cannot be brooding after graduation." Maddie says. Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"I'm not-"

"Looks like brooding from where I'm standing." Danny jokes.

Carmilla rolls her eyes and pulls Danny into a hug.

"Did you talk to Laura?" Danny asks. Carmilla clears her throat.

"Yeah." She whispers. Danny nods and pulls her closer.

-

"Elsie!" Danny calls out.

Elsie freezes and jogs over to her.

"You look all official, boss." Elsie teases. Danny laughs.

"I have something for you."

"Oh yeah?" Elsie asks, tilting her head to the side.

Danny reaches into her car and pulls out large manilla envelope. She hands it to Elsie with a grin.

"What's this?" Elsie asks.

"Open it." Danny replies, nodding at it.

Elsie opens the envelope and a white patch in the shape of the letter C slides out.

"Danny..."

"You're the boss now...Captain." Danny says.

Elsie shakes her head and stares down at the captain's patch. Suddenly she flings herself at Danny.

"Oh get off of me, you sap." Danny laughs, shoving at her.

 

 

_17th._

 

"Now are you girls sure you have everything?" Derek asks them for the tenth time.

"Yes, dad." Danny groans, closing the trunk of her car.

"Did you double-"

"We triple checked it." Danny interrupts him as Carmilla laughs.

"They'll be fine." Beatrice says, elbowing Derek in the side.

"Call us when you get down there." He says.

"We will." Carmilla promises, sliding into the passenger's seat and closing the door.

"Love you both." Danny says, kissing them both on the cheek before sliding into the driver's side.

She closes the door and pulls on her seatbelt.

"Ready?" She asks, looking over at Carmilla.

"So ready." Carmilla replies.

Danny laughs and starts the car. She waves at her parents as she backs out of the driveway, laughing as Carmilla turns up the stereo.

' _Baby, we're just runaways._ '

-

"How much longer." Carmilla asks, lifting her head from where she was using Danny's hoodie as a makeshift pillow.

"A few more hours." Danny replies, checking her gps.

Carmilla groans and rests her head back against the hoodie.

"I'm sorry, I know you have trouble sleeping in small spaces." Danny says.

"Don't apologize, baby. I just thought we were closer than we are." Carmilla says, reaching across for Danny's hand.

Danny tangles their fingers together and turns back to the road.

-

"Holy shit this place is amazing." Carmilla says, dropping her bag on the floor.

Danny pulls the door closed behind her.

"My parents are the best." Danny says, dropping her bag beside Carmilla's and grinning.

"Tell them thank you." Carmilla says, poking her side.

"I will, don't worry." Danny replies, swatting at Carmilla's hand and walking across the room to the sliding glass door that leads out to the deck. "Fuck, babe, come look at this view!" She calls out.

Carmilla shakes her head and follows her.

-

"You know what I just realized?" Carmilla calls out from the bathroom after they got back from dinner.

Danny stretches out on the bed and sighs.

"What's that?" She calls back.

"We're here by ourselves." Carmilla answers.

Danny laughs.

"Yes, we are."

"Which means we don't have to be quiet."

The door to the bathroom swings open and Danny almost falls off the bed at the sight of Carmilla wearing nothing but Danny's letterman jacket.

"That's- we- you- holy fuck." Danny stutters out.

Carmilla smirks and slowly makes her way across the room.

"What's the matter, baby?" She teases.

"Jesus Christ, Carmilla." Danny whispers.

Carmilla grins and climbs onto the bed and into Danny's lap.

"You gonna stare at me or are you gonna fuck me?" She whispers against Danny's lips.

"Both." Danny replies.

She kisses her hard.

 

 

_18th._

 

Carmilla lowers her sunglasses and watches as a soaking wet Danny approaches her.

"Enjoying yourself?" Danny teases, dropping her surfboard and stretching out on the towel next to Carmilla's.

"You never told me you knew how to surf." Carmilla says, still staring at her.

Danny shrugs.

"It's not a big deal."

"It's hot as hell."

Danny grins and rolls onto her side. She raises her eyebrow and Carmilla rolls her eyes.

"Well, it is." She argues.

"I could teach you?" Danny offers.

"Absolutely not. I'm just going to lie here and admire you." Carmilla replies, placing her sunglasses back on.

Danny laughs.

-

"Oh my god, Danny. Look. There's a ferris wheel." Carmilla says, grabbing Danny's arm as they walk down the boardwalk.

"Oh no." Danny groans.

"What?" Carmilla asks, looking up at her.

"I don't like heights." Danny admits.

"Danny Lawrence, you are six foot two." Carmilla says, raising one of her eyebrows.

"Believe me, I see the irony." Danny says, shaking her head. "I just get really queasy when I get high up like that."

"We don't have to go on it." Carmilla says.

"Do you want to?"

"Not if-"

"But do you want to?"

Carmilla nods.

"Come on, we're going." Danny says, reaching for Carmilla's hand.

-

"Are you going to open your eyes?" Carmilla asks as Danny presses her face into her shoulder.

"No." She mumbles against Carmilla's shirt.

"Are you sure?" Carmilla asks.

"Very." Danny mumbles.

Carmilla laughs and rubs Danny's back.

"It's pretty up here." She whispers.

Danny slowly lifts her head up from Carmilla's shoulder and looks around. The view is breathtaking. She can see the moon reflected off of the ocean and all the lights along the shore. She's about to admit how pretty it is when she feels that queasy feeling in her stomach.

She drops her head back to Carmilla's shoulder with a groan.

"Okay, baby. Okay." Carmilla says, running her fingers gently through Danny's hair.

-

"Feel better?" Carmilla whispers.

Danny nods her head from where she's rested against Carmilla's chest in their bed.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what it is." Danny says. Carmilla shakes her head and gently tugs on Danny's ponytail.

"Don't be sorry."

"It's weird. I'm okay with planes and stuff but out in the open like that? I get really queasy." Danny explains.

"I'm terrified of ventriloquist dummies." Carmilla admits.

Danny lifts her head up.

"Wait, really?"

Carmilla nods.

"They're creepy. And ever since I read that _Goosebumps_ book when I was a kid..." She trails off.

"Oh my god, the one with Slappy?" Danny asks.

"Don't say his name." Carmilla shudders. "God, that was awful."

Danny grins at her.

"I don't do well with spiders." Danny admits.

"Heights and spiders. Anything else?" Carmilla asks.

"Not that I can think of. And you? Small spaces and ventriloquist dummies." Danny asks, dropping her head back to Carmilla's chest. Carmilla shakes her head.

"No, that covers it." Carmilla replies, running her hand down Danny's back.

"I could kick Slappy's ass." Danny mumbles sleepily.

Carmilla laughs so hard she gets the hiccups.

 

 

_19th._

 

Danny practically bounces over to the Touch Tank, grinning like crazy. She's tall enough that she doesn't need to step up onto the step surrounding the tank, instead she leans over the side of it and sticks her hand in the water. Carmilla hangs back, watching her.

Danny squeals when one of the stingrays bumps into her hand. Carmilla laughs and snaps her picture with her phone.

"Seriously, Carm, you've got to come see these guys!" Danny calls out, grinning as another one glides under her fingers.

Carmilla puts her phone away and hops up onto the step beside of Danny. She reaches her hand in the tank just in time for another stingray to glide underneath her fingers.

"Oh wow, they're really soft." Carmilla says.

"Yeah, they are." Danny replies.

"They're your favorite, aren't they?" Carmilla asks, watching Danny's look of total delight.

"Oh, definitely." Danny replies.

"I'm glad you talked me into coming here." Carmilla admits, bumping her hip against Danny's.

Danny grins at her.

-

"Penguins!" Carmilla exclaims, tugging on Danny's hand.

Danny laughs and lets Carmilla lead her over to the penguin exhibit.

"Look at them!" Carmilla says, grabbing for her phone to take pictures.

Danny stands back and grins, watching as Carmilla takes picture after picture of the penguins.

This was definitely a good idea.

-

By the end of their tour, they wind up making out in the dark corner where the jellyfish tanks are.

Carmilla's hands sliding under Danny's tank top and Danny's fingers tangling in Carmilla's hair.

They get ten glorious minutes before they hear a group of people approaching and have to break apart.

-

"It feels weird to be eating seafood after going to the aquarium." Danny says, glancing down at her shrimp and frowning. Carmilla laughs.

"You're not eating stingray, you'll be fine." Carmilla teases, kicking her under the table. Danny shakes her head.

"Unbelievable." Danny says, laughing.

"This place is really nice." Carmilla says, looking around as she takes another bite of her fish.

"Dad told me this place has the best seafood." Danny says. "'Cadet, you can't go to the beach and not eat seafood.'"

Carmilla laughs at Danny's spot on impersonation of Derek.

"You sounded just like him. Should I be worried?" She jokes.

"Oh, totally. You're stuck with this." Danny replies, gesturing at herself.

"Am I?"

"Yes."

"Good thing I love you, then." Carmilla says.

Danny laughs.

-

"We leave tomorrow." Danny sighs out, kissing her way across Carmilla's bare back.

"Don't remind me." Carmilla groans into the pillow.

Danny bites down on Carmilla's shoulder.

"We still have plenty of time." She mumbles against Carmilla's skin.

"I know." Carmilla replies. She rolls over so she's looking up at Danny.

She runs her fingers through Danny's messy red hair and then lightly grips at her shoulders. They stare at each other for a few moments before Carmilla breaks the silence.

"Go slow, then." She whispers.

Danny leans in and kisses her. Slowly and deeply.

 

 

_20th._

 

Danny finishes packing their bags as Carmilla returns from turning in their keys.

"All packed?" She asks.

"Yes." Danny replies, kissing her quickly on the cheek.

"Did we get everything?" Carmilla asks.

"I triple checked. Scout's honor." Danny replies. Carmilla laughs.

"Ready to go?" She asks.

"No, but we have to." Danny says.

Carmilla playfully shoves at her and climbs into the car. Danny grins and climbs in after her.

-

It's later, halfway through their drive back, when Carmilla reaches over and grabs her hand.

She tangles their fingers together and looks over at Danny. She lifts her sunglasses up out of the way with her free hand.

"Danny?"

"Yeah?"

Danny looks over at her and Carmilla smiles.

"We're going to be okay, aren't we?" She asks. Danny grins.

"Yeah. Yeah, we are."

Carmilla's smile widens as the song on Danny's radio changes. She pulls her sunglasses back down and reaches over, turning the volume up.

' _Somewhere over the rainbow way up high, there's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby_...'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for everything, readers. The sequel will be up in a few weeks. :)


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